Connection
by silvergreene
Summary: N decides to travel the world to find a perfect future of both his and Touko's truth and ideals, and he asks Touko, his new friend, to come with him. But will they become more than just friends? Or rather, will their pasts let them?
1. Chapter 1: Journey and Destination

A fair warning: This fanfic's got quite a heavy amount of shipping and romantic moments, but I'm also trying to explore themes from the game as well as the characters, especially N. Plus, this IS part adventure. XD There will be battles, character and relationship development, jealousy, friendship, love triangles, and more. Lots of shipping, of course. =P

This is a rewrite of Chapter 1, and I combined previous chapters 1 and 2 because they were so short. So from now on, my chapters are going to be around 4,000+ words (This one's a bit shorter). XD I know I'm sort of fussy, but I really want to upload quality work.

Note: Touko = White; Touya = Black for those who didn't know

Also, I'd really really appreciate it if you reviewed. I want to improve and figure out what people like and don't like, and it's really helpful if you comment on what you think is good versus what you think isn't good about my style. If I'm going too fast or too slow, or if some things are too cheesy, or too boring, and especially on character portrayal. I think that my characters tend to be not defined enough, but that could just be me. I'd also like to know what I'm doing right so I don't change it. Reviews really help! Thank you! XD

Updates on Mondays for now, but that might change depending on when more people tend to be online.

So, without further ado, here's the first chapter! Enjoy (if you haven't already)! XD

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><p><strong>Connection<strong>

**Chapter One: Journeys and Destinations**

The eerie thud of Reshiram's fall echoed throughout the chamber. Slowly, the swirling dust settled, drifting dreamily around the two trainers.

Touko got to her feet painfully, wincing at the many cuts and bruises on her body. As she looked up, she saw N collapse in disbelief.

"Everything's ruined. The truth I held... The dreams Pokemon shared..." He shook his head as if he were unable to grasp the reality of the words he whispered.

"N..." Touko felt guilt stab at her. At first, all she could think about was the prevention of the separation of people and Pokemon, but now she couldn't help empathizing with the green-haired boy. She had had enough nightmares about losing this fatal match to know how he felt.

At last, after a deafening silence filled with only the lonely howl of the wind outside, N stood up. "Reshiram and I were beaten. Your ideals… Your feelings… They were stronger than mine, it seems…"

Touko opened her mouth to speak though she didn't know what to say, but before she could even try, N cut her off. "I want to talk to you about something. It's about when I first met you in Accumula Town. I was shocked when I heard what your Pokémon was saying. I was shocked because that Pokémon said it liked you. It said it wanted to be with you."

"I couldn't understand it. I couldn't believe there were Pokémon that liked people. Because, up until that moment, I'd never known a Pokémon like that. The longer my journey continued, the more unsure I became." He sighed and shook his head again. "All I kept meeting were Pokémon and people who communicated with one another and helped one another. That was why I needed to confirm my beliefs by battling with you. I wanted to confront you hero-to-hero. I needed that more than anything."

At this he paused, and Touko tried to speak again, but before she had even drawn a breath, he continued. "There's no way a person like me, someone who understands only Pokémon— No, actually… I didn't understand them, either. No way could I measure up to you, when you had met so many Pokémon and were surrounded by friends…"

The last word rang with a lonesome echo, and N's endless green eyes were sad but resolute. "What I should do now is something I'll have to decide for myself."

N turned to leave, and Touko watched him go with an ache in her chest. As he began to signal to Reshiram, her feet moved on their own and she grabbed his shirt, almost tripping in the process.

"Wait!" She called out.

N caught her in surprise as she stumbled.

"I..." She trailed off, not knowing why she had stopped him. "N..." She took a deep breath and burst out, "You said you have a dream… That dream… Make it come true! Make your wonderful dream a reality, and it will become your truth! If anyone can, it's you!" She squeezed her eyes shut, her face turning red. Finally, she dared to open one eye and peek at his response.

His eyes were wide with astonishment; his mouth was open but no sound came out—he was unused to such encouragement. With great effort, he forced his mouth shut and grasped at words to say. "Touko... I... ... Thank you."

"Well, then…" Touko didn't know what to say either. She wished she could find some magical words to make him stay, but how could she? He needed to find himself. "Farewell..." She gazed past him blankly as he gently pried her fingers from his shirt.

For once, Bianca and Cheren did not say anything. The let her simply stare in silence and a sudden, piercing loneliness as the graceful figure of Reshiram disappeared into the faraway sky. What would she do now? What sort of adventure could she have without N? What kind of purpose, if not to face off against him? She could no longer simply wander around Unova anymore. She couldn't sit at home, either, because she would always be waiting for a person who would never come. Ever.

Unnoticed, a single tear ran down her cheek. But she couldn't feel it. Or anything except the emptiness in her chest.  
>—<p>

Morning. The bright sun filtered through the thin curtains of Touko's room. She got up and brushed her teeth mechanically; she looked for all the world like a sleepwalker. Slowly, woodenly, she dressed and walked down the stairs to sit down and eat in silence.

"Sweetie... are you alright?" Her mother's face was worried.

Seeing her mother's distress, Touko halfheartedly tried to look energetic but completely and inarguably failed. She chose a better excuse instead. "I'm just tired. You know, from saving Unova and all that."

Her mother was not convinced, and she was about to pry further, but the look on her daughter's face dissuaded her. She sighed and turned on the TV.

"And yesterday, the raging battle between two heroes concluded in a close tie, according to eyewitnesses, but luckily for most of you Pokemon trainers, Team Plasma's representative did not win. Here is some footage shot by a witness to the fantastical event." The TV began to replay their battle, and as N's face, determined but tired, appeared on screen, Touko frustratedly grabbed the remote and pressed the power button repeatedly. In her haste, she accidentally turned it back on, and she caught a glimpse of his horrified expression as his Zoroark fell before the screen became pitch-black for good. For a long time, she didn't move and just sat there, eyes locked on the blank TV.

A knock on the door interrupted. Touko jumped at the sound, and for some reason, she felt a staggering hope rise in her chest; but as her mother opened the door, she was greeted only by a strange man in a coat.

"Ah..." She couldn't stop a dejected bitterness from creeping into her voice. That was stupid, of course. N didn't even know where she lived, other than that she came from Nuvema Town.

The man in the doorway did not notice, however, and he looked around, stroking an imaginary beard and nodding as Touko and her mother blinked. Finally, with a great flourish, he announced, "I am an agent from Interpol seeking your aid. I have many names, but you may refer to me as Looker!"

"What do you need?" Disappointment made Touko's words unnecessarily harsh.

"I need your assistance. You see, the Seven Sages of Team Plasma, including their leader, Ghetsis, escaped apprehension and are now roaming about. Interpol would like your assistance in bringi—"

"I'm sorry, but I don't want to hear about Team Plasma right now," Touko blurted. She couldn't take it anymore. Everything about Team Plasma reminded her of the end. The end of her journey and the cause she had been fighting for for two whole years. She stood abruptly, nearly knocking down her chair in the process, and fled through the open door.

She ran blindly like a savage beast, trampling through grass and bushes alike, leaving Lillipups and Patrats to scurry away before her. She didn't know where she was going. At some point her feet left the road, but she continued to run until she could no longer feel her lower body. Her head was a jumble, but her body moved automatically to flee, to flee...

As she ran, the scenery began to change and shift, and all of a sudden, she found that she couldn't tell where she was. Dizzy and tired, she stopped and looked around. The trees spread in every direction for what seemed like forever. There was no creature in sight, not even the smallest Bug Pokemon.

Breathing heavily, Touko staggered to a large tree nearby and tried to clear her head. Where was she? She had run out of her house and then... It was no use; her path had twisted and turned so much that it was impossible to retrace it. Waiting until after she had rested was much better.

Slowly, so slowly that it seemed surreal, the forest began to darken. Night was falling; what was the time? Stiffly, Touko pushed herself upright and shivered at the cold.

Her steps fell onto the soft grass one by one as she walked slowly, not knowing where she was headed or where she was going. In her flight, she had forgotten both her Pokemon and her bag, and she had never felt more alone or vulnerable. Against her will, her thoughts began to drift towards HIM again. Was this how he felt, cut off from everything with no human contact? She sighed and kept walking.

Their paths would never cross again. One had triumphed. One had failed. The final battle was the end to it all. That was how it was supposed to work, wasn't it? The trees filtered the moonlight in an eerie yet beautiful way, and the forest seemed to be glowing green. Where was this? Despite her concerns, she kept walking.

Finally, in the distance, she thought could make out a human figure. A town nearby? she wondered, but something about the figure made her squint and look closely.

"N?" That figure, the unmistakeable jumble of hair, the tall, lithe frame... Touko rubbed her eyes, but it was real. Unless it was a very realistic dream. She pinched herself to make sure, but nothing happened. Yes, it was real, real! N's silhouette staggered towards her slowly as he noticed her, but she felt suddenly impatient, and she broke into a run toward him, nearly tackling him in the process.

"Ow! Touko, I thought you were more civilized than that! But I'm glad you're here, I was going to go find you anyways." N's muffled voice sounded so familiar and sweet and comforting. But it seemed rather tired somehow.

Touko stepped back to look at him carefully and gasped. "N, what happened?"

He was bruised and cut everywhere that she could see, and she suspected that his clean, undamaged clothes covered the worst injuries. One side of his face was bit swollen, and he smiled with only half of his face. Nonetheless, it was a cheerful, heartwrenching smile.

"Don't smile like that!" It hurt to see him like this. "What happened?"

He laughed, a freer sound than she had ever heard from him before. "I decided what I wanted to do!" Indeed, he had an air of confidence about him that she hadn't seen since the day she had met him. But the wounds, the cuts, the scrapes...

"You decided to become a professional punching bag?" Touko cried angrily, upset more at his wounds than at him.

"No, that was from when I broke my ties with Team Plasma."

She stared for a second, then realized what had happened. "Ghetsis," she hissed with more venom than she had ever known that she possessed. She was always determined, yes, but hatred rarely infected her.

"Don't worry, Touko. He had to run away before he could do much to me." This didn't assuage the anger in the brunette's eyes, but N continued. "And besides, I know what I want now."

Touko's fury still did not subside, but she gave him a curious glance. "What would that be?"

Surprisingly, N didn't answer at first. He brooded as if considering whether or not telling her was worth it. She waited with impatience. Then, he seemed to change the subject. "Touko, will you be my friend?"

"Of course," she answered, taken aback. "I thought we always were."

"I've never had any real friends... I wouldn't have known. Will you... Will you always be my friend?" Despite his newfound confidence, he sounded unsure.

"Of course." How could she not be his friend? There was no way she could ever hate N. Not him. She couldn't imagine it. Her head swam as she considered a future of hating him, but it only made her dizzy.

"Then, Touko, will you come with me? Let's travel the world together. We'll go to find a new future, a future where Pokemon and people are both perfect. A world where our truth and ideals will fuse and the most elegant formulas will govern everything." He gazed at her steadily, a silent plea in his warm, moss-green eyes, and she was reminded of the time he had told her to become strong to challenge him as a Hero.

And just like that time, there was only one answer she could give. "Of course." Yes, there was something about their meetings that made her wonder if they were meant to happen. A certainty about them. Somehow, the two who agreed on nothing and yet everything were meant to take the world by storm. Two Heroes, two ideals, two truths. That was how it had to be, because there was no black without white.

The surge of giddiness in her chest told her that this was what she wanted but had not dared to hope for. A new adventure. A new challenge. A new journey. With...

For some reason, her legs felt weak all of a sudden, and she laughed her heart out. Her thoughts fluttered and refused to make sense, finally leaving her altogether. A new journey. A new adventure!

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><p>"You've already said good-bye?" N leaned in and asked in Touko's ear. He was the sort of person who looked straight into your eyes when he talked, but that was impossible while riding on Zekrom's back.<p>

"Yeah. My mom said she'd miss me, and I called Cheren, too, but he just said that I should get stronger so we could battle again." Touko had to yell because she was facing the front. "That harebrained Bianca never picks up her Xtranceiver, though, so we'll have to find her. I'm sure she's near here."

"Let's take a break first. I think Zekrom's getting tired."

The great dragon, offended by this statement, rumbled his protest, but he obliged because it was clear that Touko was the one who was about to fall out of the sky. Slowly, as if to show that he wasn't tired in the least, he wheeled into a descending spiral and deposited the two trainers onto the ground.

"I think you've got a chill," N frowned worriedly as they alighted. "You must not used to flying that high."

Touko waved it away. "Don't be ridiculous. I've walked all over Unova. I'm as fit as a Bisharp."

"If you say so," N sighed. She did not like it when her weaknesses were revealed, he had learned from their battles. He tried to assist her as unobtrusively as possible instead.

They sat down and N pulled out a world map from his sack. "We've been all over Unova, so we should go to another region first. Kanto, maybe?"

"Well..." Touko chewed her lip. "I wanted to go to Hoenn first. They say there's a huge confrontation between two organizations that may put all the people and Pokemon there in danger."

"But think of all the Pokemon that Team Rocket steals and abuses," N argued. "Even if people in Hoenn fight, the police can stop them. But they can't stop theft or abuse because it's not in the open."

"That's not true if legendaries are involved," Touko frowned, "I mean, do you think any police could have stopped our fight at the castle? We should go to help as many people and Pokemon as we can."

"So it doesn't matter if Pokemon suffer at the hands of Team Rocket?" N scowled, his eyes flashing.

"Of course it matters. But those are things that police should fight. Small things. Crime, theft. They don't need our help with that," Touko said placatingly.

N turned red. "I can't believe that you of all people would belittle the suffering Pokemon."

"I'm not belittling them, I—" She stopped mid-sentence and paused. After thinking for a moment, she said uncomfortably, "Well, I... I have to. I know it's selfish. It doesn't have to be long. Please?"

He never got his chance to reply, for at that moment Bianca rushed in with a giddy cry of "Touuuuukoooooo!"

"Bianca! We were looking for you!" She turned around in surprise after shooting one last, pleading look at N.

"Oooh! It's that cute boy from the castle!" The blonde positively gushed. "You do look so adorable together!"

N inclined his head in confusion, and Touko, feeling irritated all of a sudden, snapped, "Don't give me that bullshit."

"Aww, you shouldn't curse when you're shy, Tou-chaaan!" Bianca giggled and got on her tiptoes to pat the brunette's head—quite a feat for someone five inches shorter than her.

"I'm not shy, you airhead," Touko glared. "You're the one making stupid comments and forgetting to check your Xtranceiver!" Bianca only laughed again, and Touko gave up and sighed. "Whatever. I have something to tell you." It was impossible to stay mad at the petite blonde for long. She was too cheerful.

"Your friendship is rather... frustrating," N observed.

Touko shot him a glare. She wasn't quite sure why she was so irritated now. The argument about where to go first had only been a minor one, and Bianca's comment was typical Bianca-style fluff; she knew better than to take it to heart.

"Um, Bianca, I'm going to be leaving with N to go travel again. We'll be leaving for farther places this time, so I wanted to say bye to you."

"Oh, yes, Cheren told me," Bianca chirped with a laugh. "Don't worry, you don't need to say bye to me. We'll be together all the time anyways."

Touko frowned. "I never knew you were one to say such cheesy things..."

"No, really. We'll be together all the time. I'm coming with you," Bianca said earnestly. "Cheren's just become the new Champion, so he'll be busy with challengers until people get used to him, so I'll be lonely." She giggled as she said that, which took all the credibility out of it.

"Oh..." Touko blinked blankly. "That's certainly a surprise." She laughed, "Well, I'll be much less lonely, then."

"Oh, you wouldn't have needed to worry about that anyways." Bianca looked meaningfully at N, and Touko rolled her eyes. Bianca was being rather persistent on the matter. Even more than usual. And it irritated her, which was also unusual. "So, which way are we going? Kanto or Hoenn?" Bianca's voice pulled her from her thoughts.

N started to speak, but Touko cut him off. "Either way, we'll be going in the same direction for a while. Let's just head northwest first." She sighed took out a Pokeball. "I'll send out Zekr—"

"Reshiram," N interrupted. "He's fully recovered from the battle, and Zekrom has been flying for a day." He saw that Touko was about to protest and said, "Please, listen to me. Your Pokemon need rest and so do you. I can't let any of my friends get injured on the way, can I?" His soft, grass-green eyes looked pleadingly at Touko, and she relented with a huff. She was feeling dizzy anyways-not that she would ever admit it.

The three of them mounted the elegant white dragon, which began to swirl like a cloud into the clear blue sky.

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><p>*legasp* Oh dear, Touko is feeling dizzy. =P I wonder what that could mean...<p>

Chapter Two (the real one) will have lots of shipping (especially since I combined three tangent-ful ship chapters together). Look forward to that! :3

And please review! Thanks! XD


	2. Chapter 2: Fever and Desire

**EDIT: IMPORTANT NEWS GONE.**

I talked to some peoplez. They said my fanfic is fine rated T. :D

Whee new chapter! :3 I've been dying to update this for days. I know I said Monday, but I realized that I wouldn't be able to update until Monday afternoon, so I was going to change it to Sunday, but then I figured, hey, why not just Saturday? So, I'm not actually sure when I'm going to submit after this, but expect something like Friday/Saturday.

Well, this is a bit of a tangent from the main plot, but it's shipful x3 and it's got important stuffs in it =P And yes, Pokemon centers are apparently hospitals, too XD

So anyways, enjoy!

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><p>The rain beat down on them as if driven by a curse; it had started only a few hours after their departure, and it seemed to get heavier with every passing hour. N held on to Reshiram's mane with one hand and clung to Touko's feverish arm with the other. Surprisingly, Bianca was fine-idiots never caught colds?-but he knew that Touko had already been sick before they started flying, and the rain only made it much, much worse. They had to find a stop soon.<p>

Bianca scanned the ground while holding on to her hat and her friend, wanting to lose neither to the rain. She could sense N's growing panic. She was worried about Touko as well, but she knew her friend would be fine as always.

More importantly... She giggled silently at N's frustration. It boded well for Touko, who was so often alone. She was inclined to being too neutral to the point of ending up alone, and Bianca was much more worried that her friend would end up alone for life than for her health. Being the justice-bringer often meant alienating everyone, no matter how kind your intentions, and that happened often with Touko, who tried to be fair in everything.

She sighed. It was in large part her and Cheren's fault. Whenever they argued, Touko found herself as the mediator, and her compromises never pleased either Cheren or Bianca, stubborn as they both were. But Touko did not take sides, did not agree or disagree with anyone, did not battle against... or with. It was unhealthy to be so alone. Only N had really been able to make her fight for or even express her own beliefs without worrying about making others unhappy. And in a lot of ways, they were so different yet so alike. Yes, they were perfect for each other.

"Oh! There!" Bianca pointed to a patch of red among the never-ending forest-green canopy. "A Pokemon center?"

"But there isn't a city around here for miles," N objected.

"We could try,"' Bianca suggested.

At that moment, Touka coughed, and N acted impulsively, taking Reshiram down to see the red patch. "I can't let something happen to my only human friend," he gritted as the white dragon raced toward the ground.

Bianca could only barely hold on to Reshiram as she yelled, "Hey, I'm your friend too, aren't I?"

The patch turned out to be nothing but a clearing of beaten flowers and berries. Disappointed, N asked Reshiram to go up again, but the great creature only shook it's head.

N slipped off and frowned in concern. "Are you alright?"

He listened for a response, but it was jumbled and mushy. He couldn't tell what the beast meant. As he tried to ask again, the dragon suddenly roared without warning and charged into a tree, splintering the ancient trunk and blowing Bianca and N back. Alarmed, he returned Reshiram to its Pokeball.

"They're Figy berries," Bianca said sadly, examining the ground. "Berries don't grow in Unova proper, but we're so far into the borderland forests that they've started appearing."

"Oh!" N lapsed into thought. "It's my fault. Reshiram would have been able to resist the berries' effect if it hadn't been for the rain. I should have realized it would be weakened by water. We should have asked Zekrom."

"I'm so sorry," Bianca wailed. "I really should have paid more attention. There are so many flowers and berries here. I should have known that even a legendary would get Confused."

Touko coughed and muttered something.

Bianca blinked before understanding her words. "Oh! No, the berries shouldn't work on humans if we only inhale them. It would be bad to eat one, though. No, I think your headache is because of your fever."

N tugged at Bianca. "We need to find shelter. Reshiram needs to rest for at least a couple of hours, and Zekrom won't listen to me, only Touko. He won't even let me call him out of his Pokeball, so I can't explain." He sighed sadly at his friend's pain, then gently lifted Touko's limp figure and began walking in the direction of the forest.

There was a rather large hollow at the base of an ancient tree, and the three of them tried to squeeze in, but it was an uncomfortably close fit.

Bianca prodded N. "Hey, we're friends, right?"

He looked confused. "Are we? How do these things work?"

Bianca giggled. "Well, if you care about someone and someone cares about you, then you're friends."

"Oh." Silence. "So you care about me?"

"Certainly." A laugh.

"Then I suppose we are friends." More silence. "That's it?"

"Yes. That's it." Bianca laughed again, then patted Touko's dripping wet hair. "It's a bit too squishy in here, though, so in the name of friendship, I shall move to that other hollow right there."

And with that she left, despite N's protests, leaving him to his thoughts. And Touko.

He looked at her. Her head was resting on his shoulder, and her damp brown locks framed her face perfectly. In the moonlight, her pale skin glowed, and she looked like a goddess. More perfect and beautiful than Anthea and Concordia both, though they would not have liked to hear it. Ghetsis had called her "coarse" once, but he must not have eyes if he thought that. He recalled that time on the Ferris wheel, the lovely glow in her eyes as they danced with the lights of Nimbasa. Even the fever made her look lovely, a light blush bringing a pink glow to her face.

When she was asleep, she looked so at peace. What did she fight against when she was awake? The thought nibbled at him. She fought it every waking second, and only in sleep did she look fragile and vulnerable. Yes, she fought her weakness. She fought herself.

No wonder she was the true hero, he realized; he had only fed his doubts and tried to solve them by battling her. He had been using Pokemon as tools, he realized sadly. But they were still friends, weren't they? He would apologize to them, to his Pokemon friends.

He sighed. She had never looked so fragile as she did now. Who did she show her weak side to, he wondered. Her friends, probably. That was what friends were for, he had been told. For helping each other. Would she let him see her weak side, then, if he was her friend? Would he be able to help her and hold her? He sighed again. Friendship was very complex. A puzzle he could not solve. A system of formulas that would not balance. It scared him, this nondistinct line between black and white, but it was beautiful, so beautiful.

No, that wasn't right... it wasn't black and white anymore, he realized. The world had stopped being black and white to him, but neither was it gray. It had become colorful, and that was what scared him. Which was more right, red or blue? He couldn't say, but he knew that they were both worth fighting for, and that was a new thing to him. He no longer knew exactly what to do. The formula for changing the world was to combine those ideas... was that right...?

"Don't..." Touko murmured, a look of sheer pain on her face. He instantly forgot his thoughts as he turned to look at her.

"What is it?" N whispered in alarm. He felt her forehead, but she didn't stir. Sleeptalking. A nightmare. He shuddered. Those were always unpleasant at best, he knew from countless nights. Should he wake her? But she needed her rest.

"Please..." One of Touko's hands grasped weakly at thin air. "N..."

"Touko? What do you need?" Panic rose in him again. He needed to help his friend, needed to help her, but what could he do?

"Don't... leave...!" A small sob escaped her.

N didn't move for several moments, but then he carefully moved his arm around her and stroked her wet hair. "I won't leave."

Still asleep and feverish, she tried to cling to his shirt, but her grasp was weak and her hand slipped. Hesitantly, N reached out and held her hand. It was freezing cold.

"Why did you leave..." Her painful whisper clung to the air. He was about to respond, but his answer was knocked out of him by a single name. "Why... How could... you... Touya..."

How did one answer a plea to another person? For some reason, the name sent a sharp pain to his chest. Suddenly tired, he leaned his head on her shoulder and closed his eyes for a quick rest. Just a few minutes, he told himself. A few...

* * *

><p>Touko woke to a chilly dampness on her skin, but somehow she felt warm to the very core of her being. With great effort, she forced open her heavy eyelids, but only halfway; sleep still hung over her like a heavy blanket, and she could not see or feel much. Only words penetrated her exhaustion.<p>

She began to feel a body wrapped protectively around hers. The light breathing meant that he was still asleep, a dimly conscious part of her said.

N! He had been holding her this whole time? If she had been able, she would have been shocked and embarrassed beyond measure, but her blanket of sleep did not let her. She couldn't even try to shift away.

The breathing began to quicken a bit. N shifted a little, and she heard his hair rustle as he looked around sleepily.

"It's morning already," he frowned, then patted Touko's head. "I'm sorry," he sighed. "I meant to take care of you better. We have to get to a city fast."

His words almost made her want to either cry or yell. She didn't need anyone to take care of her. She took care of others. Since when did it flip? It was a strange thing, depending on others.

She trusted her friends, of course, but it had always been her who had gone out to battle gyms first, to challenge N, to catch Zekrom, to fight Ghetsis... And whenever Cheren and Bianca began to bicker too much, she always stepped in, even if it made them a bit mad at her.

She gave a little squeak as N picked her up. He brought her carefully to Reshiram, where Bianca was waiting.

"I got the coordinates right this time!" Bianca announced proudly. "We're too much to the southwest of Mistralton. It'll be a bit of a detour, but it's necessary."

The great dragon began to flap it's wings, blowing away everything around it, before finally launching into the sky and wheeling in the direction of Mistralton. Somewhere along the way, the rocking of the dragon lulled Touko to sleep, and the last thing she saw was the vastness of the sky, the sky that covered everything.

As they finally landed at Mistralton, N nearly tripped in his haste to get to Nurse Joy. "Please," he told her, "She's terribly sick."

"Oh dear!" The worried nurse's hands fluttered over the unconscious girl. "Audi, dear, please get Milly to prepare rooms for these poor children, and a hospital room for this girl." An Audino nearby gave an attentive chirp and bounced away.

"Follow Audi there, she'll get you to your rooms. You must have been in a terrible storm. Oh my, and that poor girl looks quite sick..."

N did not say anything but followed the Audino quickly. Luckily, they had been given a set of rooms on the ground floor, so they didn't have to walk far. N gently placed Touko on the white hospital bed with a light creak and collapsed into a nearby chair.

_You should take a shower. Your friend with the blonde hair is already, and you're soaking wet._

"Soon," N promised. "As soon as the doctor gets here."

The Audino frowned disapprovingly but said nothing before bouncing away to take care of other patients. Moments later, a doctor knocked on the door and entered.

"Room A5, patient 'Touko'?" He queried.

N scrambled up. "Yes. She's terribly sick. Will she be alright?"

The doctor put on his stethoscope and began to examine her. He checked her pulse and breathing as well before frowning. "Quite unusual indeed," he muttered, then rapped the door three times hard.

A nurse came in as if by magic, bearing a needle and some tubes. Swiftly, the doctor took the needle and attached one of the tubes, inserting it into Touko's arm. N watched in concern as they extracted three tubes of blood, but he didn't protest.

Finally, it was over, and the doctor sighed. "We'll have to wait a while for results from the lab. Her breathing is erratic but her pulse is relatively normal, so I think she should be fine for now. Meanwhile, you need a shower, and I'll get some people to help this lady bathe. Don't worry about a thing."

Unconvinced, N decided to follow the doctor's instructions anyways, but first he turned around and asked, "Can you ask someone to bring a mattress or a pallet to this room? I'm a bit worried, so I'd like to sleep here tonight..."

The doctor gave him a brisk glance. "Certainly. She must mean a lot to you."

"Oh yes, she's a great friend."

"I bet. We've all heard that one before," the doctor muttered and snorted.

An hour later, both N and Touko were in dry clothes. Bianca had come in to chat for a while, but she left to update Cheren and Professor Juniper on their journey.

A knock on the door. The doctor entered without bothering to be let in. "The results. As I thought, they are incredibly unusual. You must have had quite the adventure."

"Will she be alright?" N jumped up from his seat next to Touko's bed.

The doctor frowned. "If she's lasted this long, yes. There shouldn't be any problems if we get immediate treatment."

Relieved, N sunk back down into his chair.

"Now," the doctor said, tapping his clipboard, "your friend seems to be suffering from an intense cold, which is nothing new. She also seems to be suffering from Figy berry poisoning, so she is in a state that is very similar to a Pokemon's Confused state. However, being human, her ability to recover from it is severely weaker, so not only will it last for another night at least, she is also nearly unconscious from the strain." He snorted and muttered under his breath, "I don't even know how you managed this seeing as there aren't even any berries in Unova."

"But... she was sick even before we got to the berry field," N protested, ignoring the last comment. "And besides, Bianca said that inhaling berry scent or pollen wouldn't affect you. This does not equate."

The doctor sighed. "Normally, it would not affect her, but she was already in a severely weakened state. Indeed, what you say matches up with the results. The primary cause for her sickness seems to be..." He paused and frowned. "Has she been in any battles lately? Ones involving incredibly powerful Pokemon?"

"Yes," N answered, confused.

"Did that particularly strong Pokemon have an irregular Psychic move? Not Psychic or Confusion or even Psybeam, but maybe Psywave or Extrasensory?"

N opened his mouth, then closed it again in realization. Finally, after several moments, he spoke in a hoarse whisper. "Reshiram has Extrasensory. Touko got hit with it once."

The Extrasensory had been aimed at her Serperior, but it had dodged, not realizing that Touko was behind. She had tried to dodge as well, but the blast was too big and still hit her.

It was his fault, then? It was his fault that Touko was sick?

* * *

><p>Night had fallen. A nurse entered the room with a cart full of strange objects.<p>

"Are you sure you want to sleep here? There's a room with a proper bed right next to this one, and it might get cold." The nurse glanced at the trees outside, which were swaying wildly from the heavy wind. Dark clouds obscured the bright moon, so the night sky was gloomy and cold.

"Oh, yes. If she needs help she might not be able to yell since she's sick. If I'm in the other room, I won't be able to hear her." N nodded with conviction.

"Alright, then. Your girlfriend is very lucky."

N tilted his head. "Friends are supposed to help each other."

The nurse blinked and shrugged. "Um... sure." She rolled her eyes before she left. "Remember to give her the medication at 3:00 AM. If you don't, a nurse will come by ten minutes later to check anyways, so don't worry. We just thought that for this... particular case... someone familiar would be... safer."

"What do you mean?"

The nurse shrugged. "It's hard to say. It's different for each person because the medication works based off of their mental structure, especially their subconscious. A stranger might make them scared or upset. If it gets to be too much, just ring the bell."

She gently closed the door as she left, and N yawned. It was late already, and he needed sleep. He glanced at Touko once more before slipping into his puffy pallet. It was cottony soft and it did not take long for him to fall asleep, dreaming of clouds and a soft embrace.

A deafening roar of thunder followed by a sharp gasp woke N from his sleep. Touko was sitting upright, panting, a frenzied look to her eyes. She was covered in a thin layer of sweat, and her hands were clenched tightly. N glanced at the clock, but it was still 2:34. The earlier dose of medicine was probably wearing off, but it was still too dangerous to give her another.

"Touko? Are you okay?" He got up quietly and kneeled next to her bed.

She couldn't hear him, though, and she shuddered and gasped again as another thunderous roar passed. He put one hand on her shoulder, and her head whipped around, fear glistening in her wild eyes as they met his.

"Shhh... it's okay..." He gently patted her head, feeling awkward and useless. Much to his relief, her tense body relaxed just a little, and he wondered what to do next.

After several fretful minutes, he glanced at the clock again. 2:57. He took the small vial of medicine and uncapped it, offering it to Touka. "You'll need another dose now."

She shook her head vigorously. Her eyes were still wild and unfocused.

"You have to. It's for your sickness." How had Ghetsis made him take his pills? He shuddered and shook his head. What about his mother? He only had vague memories, but he tried to recall them anyways.

"I'll give you an reward," he promised. "Anything you want."

Her eyes began to focus again and she blinked, then took the small vial swallowed its contents. A moment passed, and she shuddered, but nothing seemed to happen.

"N... I thought you left?" She asked in a small voice. She seemed extraordinarily childish for some reason, probably because of the medicine.

"I didn't leave." He wanted to add that he would never leave, but he knew that he had intended to at first.

Touko smiled an achingly beautiful smile. "That's great... I was so worried about that."

"You were?" He blinked before remembering that she was still delirious, but it warmed him nonetheless.

She half-smiled and giggled childishly. "I didn't know what I was going to do anymore. I just couldn't imagine going on an adventure that you weren't part of."

"I..." He didn't know what to say. Were these her real feelings? She spoke with so much emotion that they had to be, but she was feverish. He didn't dare believe it. He wanted her to be his best friend so much, but he was afraid of wanting when it came to humans. What did she feel?

Yet another burst of thunder broke his train of thought. Touko inhaled sharply and her eyes widened, staring past him, seeing nothing. Was she afraid of thunder? He had seen her face bug Pokemon, deadly poison Pokemon, great dragons, howling blizzards, raging blasts of fire... He would never have guessed.

What did one do to comfort a friend? he wondered, dismayed. He took one of Touko's tightly clenched fists. They were much too warm from the fever. Slowly, she relaxed her hand it was so small! and wrapped her fingers in his.

Her eyes began to close and she let her head rest on his shoulder. He hesitated and kissed her lightly on her forehead, just like his mother had done when he was young. He didn't remember much of her, but she had been warm and beautiful and comforting.

"I want a hug," Touko demanded.

"Er...what?" The request made him blink.

"I. Want. A. Hug." She pouted a little, for all the world like a 6-year-old, but somehow he doubted that Touko at age six had sounded like that. "You said I could have anything I wanted."

"Oh. Yes." He put one arm around her stiffly. She snuggled in closer to him, and he relaxed and pulled her in.

"Touya, you're always so warm." She murmured dreamily.

He sighed. She was dreaming of that "Touya" again. Who was he to her? More special than a simple friend? More special than he was to her? Human friendship was complicated... But it was far too warm and soft for such thoughts. He drifted off to sleep.

* * *

><p>Bianca entered the room the next morning to find the two of them sleeping soundly together. She giggled a bit before tapping N. He rubbed his eyes and blinked, then carefully shifted away from Touko and got up.<p>

"You look absolutely adorable together!" Bianca gushed, clapping her hands excitedly. N tilted his head in confusion, but Bianca only shook her head and giggled again. "You probably shouldn't do that when she's awake, though. Unless she lets you."

"Was that wrong?" N asked apologetically.

"No, no, no. Oh, it was absolutely perfectly correct. But if she was awake, Touko would hit you. She doesn't like to depend on people or look weak." Bianca sighed, and N nodded. He had seen that. "And also," Bianca continued with another giggle, "You should only do that with your girlfriend."

"How is that different?" N frowned, puzzled.

"Well, a girlfriend is very special. She should be your soul mate. She's your most special person, the one you love with all your heart and soul, more special than all the people in the world. The one you never want to leave, the one you want to spend the rest of your life with. And the one who loves you in just the same way." Bianca sighed dreamily. "Ideally, anyways."

N nodded. He had seen those before. Couples at the amusement parks and musicals that seemed to see no one but each other. They held each others hands and hugged and kissed and battled side by side and rode Ferris wheels together and gazed into each others eyes. It made him feel lonely sometimes.

"N? Bianca?" Touko was sitting upright now and was rubbing her eyes. "Is it morning already? What happened?"

"Nothing at all." Bianca giggled suspiciously, and Touko frowned. She was about to ask her about it, but the doctor knocked and gestured for her to come.

He quietly closed the door behind him as they exited, and he spoke gravely. "We diagnosed your sickness last night. I'm afraid that being exposed to a very powerful Extrasensory caused long-term damage to both your physical and mental state, causing you to be weakened enough for both high altitudes and berries to affect you dramatically. Luckily, we have treated it for now, but..."

"But what?" Touko asked cautiously.

"I'm afraid that your sensitive state may recur if the proper stimulus is present due to the fact that the Pokemon was so extraordinarily powerful."

"What sort of stimulus, then?"

"Some sort of psychic energy that is similar to the one found in the Pokemon's Extrasensory, probably. I think you'll be fine unless you are caught in the blast again, though." The doctor sighed and tapped his clipboard. "Although honestly, these readings are already off the charts. I've never seen any sort of Psychic energy like this. It almost resembles..." He frowned. "It resembles the energy of Ghost-type moves quite a bit, which is very odd. But your friend did say it was a very unique Pokemon, so I suppose that must be it."

Touko nodded numbly and returned to her room, but she had no time to brood, for Bianca had already interrupted her.

"Do you remember what happened last night?" The blonde asked innocently.

"No..." Touko frowned again, trying to figure out her friend's game. For some reason, she glanced at N, whose face was a mix of disappointment and relief.

"How was your sleep?" He asked, and his voice carried an undercurrent of something she couldn't grasp. Confusion? Sadness? Concern? No, none of those was right...

"I... It was nice," she answered cautiously. "I think I had a nightmare at first, but all I remember is warmth and fuzziness." Her answer got another inexplicable giggle from Bianca, but she ignored it.

N nodded and his voice returned to its normal resolute but daydreamy tone. "Let's get going, then! We have whole regions to explore!"

Her suspicions were pushed aside as her excitement flared. They were starting their voyage! They were going somewhere new! Her thoughts turned to Touya, but she shook them off. He was somewhere far away and just a part of the past. If she found him she would tell him that. Yes, if she found him... He was part of the past. Nothing but the past.

The past would not bother her. It couldn't bother her. But all the same, she shuddered a little in foreboding.

* * *

><p>And it's over. XD I'd have liked to show Touko's tough side more first, but whatever. Next chapter is a return to the main plot. :3 Be warned: from this point on, there will be a steady development of relationships, including some love triangle-ness. It won't be very slow, but it might take a while for impatient people. So, long story short, no free fluff. = Although I do like fluff.

Also, please review! I'm actually sort of stuck. I'm not sure whether I want my story to be more fluffy or plotful/suspenseful. Either way, there'll be a fair amount of both, but I'd like to see what readers want more. Also, if you thought this chapter was cheesy or OOC, or even if the characters were too undefined, I'd like to know since I'm trying to improve. XD So, if you read this and liked it, please please please take just 2 minutes to write a few quick sentences about why it was good! And if you really hated it, write about that too as I am trying to improve. Pretty please? Thanks and look forward to next week! XD


	3. Chapter 3: Past and Present

Okay, I lied. I know I said I was going to update on Fridays/Saturdays but I'm updating twice this week. Again. /shot XD

I mean, ACTUAL PLOT. Can you imagine that? ACTUAL PLOT now. :D And plus I just finished writing freaking chapter 5 so I'm like whatever I might as well, right?

Warning: some Touya and Touko moments. D: But you'll forgive me because it makes everything better (later) x3

Enjoy!

* * *

><p>"Hoenn!"<p>

"Johto!"

"We should definitely go to Hoenn first!"

"But think of the Pokemon that Team Rocket abuses!"

"Team Magma and Aqua want to summon legendaries! That's far more dangerous! Besides, Hoenn is closer!"

"But "

"Um, I hate to interrupt, but can we... uhh..." Bianca pointed at an island town in the distance below them. "We haven't seen civilization in two days, and I want real food."

Touko and N both glared at her.

"Fine," N accepted a bit unhappily. "Since we're already at Dewford, I guess I have no choice. Johto is only two day's flight away on Reshiram or Zekrom, though.

"Well, at least we're going the right way," Touko scowled, looking not in the least happy to have won. She would have preferred to win by arguing.

Bianca laughed nervously and pulled her fingers through her hair. "It's rare for you to argue, Touko... You're usually the one breaking up me and Cheren's arguments."

Touko sighed and relented. "Sorry, Bianca. I'm a bit tense because of all the flying."

N nodded too. "I shouldn't argue with my friends over little things. I won't be able to find a perfect solution if I can't accept others' ideas."

Touko laughed fondly all of a sudden. "You sound just like Touya when you say that."

N tilted his head. "Who is that, anyways?"

Her laughter died. "He was... someone very important to me."

"A friend?"

"Oh, yes," Touko's eyes darkened. "Just a friend. Even though I "

Bianca cleared her throat nervously and Touko blinked and sighed. "Sorry. I shouldn't dig up the past like that."

Bianca sighed as well. It had been more than two years... Could Touko not forget it? Silently, she cursed Touya as well. She wasn't a mean-spirited person, and her rare curses were twice as venomous for their infrequency.

She pushed her thoughts away as Zekrom hovered for a few seconds before plunging downwards toward the small island town of Dewford. Next to her, Touko was laughing and feeling the wind roar by with an outstretched hand, but Bianca preferred hanging on for dear life, herself. As the ground began to near, she squeezed her eyes shut until she felt Zekrom slow and touch the wonderfully solid sand of the beach.

"Whoaaaa! That's some Pokemon you got!" A nearby fisherman seemed to have fallen off of his rock and was trying to get back up.

"Yes, isn't he magnificent?" Touko beamed at the great black dragon, who roared proudly in response.

To his credit, N didn't say anything, but his thoughts were transparent from the smug look on his face. Touko noticed and elbowed him teasingly, sticking her tongue out at him. He chose to ignore it.

"Say..." The fisherman interrupted their silent banter. "You wouldn't happen to be that thief that came by two nights ago, would you?" He scrutinized them suspiciously, then shook his head. "Nah, it was definitely a guy, and not nearly as tall as that bean sprout of a freak you got there." N opened his mouth to protest, but the fisherman had already started ranting and showed no signs of stopping. "Here, we like tough men. Men of character! Yes, sir ee! You need to have plenty of muscle to tough them big catches. Take Brawly. He's a tough one, aye, or else he wouldna been no gym leader, 'specially not here. Why, even that girlie next to you looks tougher than you are, eh?"

The fisherman roared with laughter and slapped N good-naturedly, causing the slender boy to almost fall. N winced. "Aha... Yes, well... What was that you said about a thief?

"Aye, that thief, he was short but spry as an Ambipom! A fine sort of lad. He was, eh... I suppose you'd call him a 'Pokemon thief'?" He laughed again for some inexplicable reason and slapped his knee. "Stole a gym badge, though by the looks of those Pokemon he was carryin', I dunno why he'd need to steal it."

"A Pokemon thief?" N asked, shocked. "I thought that kind of thing only happened in Kanto."

The fisherman kept laughing. "Aye, that's why yer so skinny, lad. Ya think too much. Oh!" His rod began to shake, and he lost all interest in the trio as he frantically fought with the thrashing Pokemon on his hook. N began edging away with a hurt look on his face, and Touko followed, snickering. Bianca was engrossed in the fish on the hook for a moment, but she noticed Touko leaving and quickly followed.

"A Pokemon thief!" She exclaimed. "You should try to catch him! It's perfect work for heroes!"

"Of course. I don't intend to let anyone mistreat Pokemon so," N said with a frown. "It bothers me that this is happening in Hoenn, though. This was the region with the lowest reported amount of Pokemon theft and abuse. Nonetheless, we must catch the thief." He looked at Touko expectantly.

"Yes... we should... catch the thief..." Touko echoed, distracted by somethin. Bianca bit her lip with a worried expression.

They wandered across the small beach, finding the town they had seen from Zekrom's back. One building was much more ornate than the others, and a sign labeled "Dewford Hall" was planted in front of it.

Touko pushed open the fancy double doors brusquely and found herself among the most hideously dressed people she had ever seen. The bright neon colors screamed at her eyes and they began to water. She had trouble seeing for several seconds, but after blinking, her eyes began to focus.

"Look, look!" A woman exclaimed excitedly. "She's so moved by our trendiness that she's crying! Oh, it's always so wonderful to bring joy to the world."

"Are you kidding?" Touko asked with disbelief. "I think I'm going blind just looking at these ridiculous colors!"

"Our radiance is so dazzling that you're blinded? Oh, you kidder," the woman giggled with a wave of her hand.

"Touko, what's going on?" N asked as he entered with Bianca. "Did something happe Arceus, my eyes!" His hand flew protectively to his face.

"What's wrong?" Bianca asked, then glanced around. "Oh, what a lovely room!"

The woman nodded in satisfaction and put an arm around the little blonde in camaraderie, leading her away. "Yes, we put our utmost trendiness into decorating it. Look over there! That statue was created recently out of recycled hippy vans and chalk. And that painting..."

"Hippy vans," Touko muttered and snorted with a glance at N.

"Hey, hey, have you heard about the thief from a couple of nights ago? He was totally hip!" A little boy piped up nearby.

"Indeed, he reminded me of my youth," an old man agreed.

"How could you say that?" N asked in horror. "He was a Pokemon thief!"

"A Pokemon thief...? Oh, you must have been listening to old Sherman. He thinks he's so funny when he mixes 'Pokemon trainer' with 'thief,' so just humor him," the old man shook his head with a sigh. "No, the thief only stole a gym badge, and right in front of Brawly, I might add. The gym leader says he had mighty powerful Pokemon hold everyone down, so he's just letting the guy have the badge."

"Powerful pokemon..." Touko seemed distracted again. "Was he..." She hesitated. "Did he laugh a lot? Did he seem happy or cheerful?"

"Eh? I wouldn't know, you'd have to ask Brawly or the other gym trainers. Do you know him?"

"No, that's impossible," Touka said with a frown.

With some effort, she dragged Bianca out of the hall and they walked towards the hall. Touko remained silent the entire way, and she stared at he ground with a troubled gaze.

Touya was nimbler than any Pansage in Unova, and he had been the most cheerful person around. She knew that he had been bothered by his shortness since he had been little the last time she had seen him, he had only barely reached Touko's height and she had teased him constantly about it. Whenever she had felt scared or weak, she had turned to Touya. Whenever she had trouble, she had turned to Touya. For all his pranks and mischief, Touya had been the most reliable person she had ever known.

"Why did you leave?" She whispered, feeling a sudden loneliness. "Why did you leave ME?" She shivered, the salty wind reminding her of the Unova sea. Touya's favorite.

As if sensing her thoughts, N asked quietly, "Touko... who is Touya?"

"What?" She whirled around, alarmed, disliking the intrusion into her most sensitive thoughts.

"You said, 'How could you leave me,' to him before, when you were sick with fever. Is he... very important to you?"

"In... In some ways," she said cautiously.

He said nothing in reply. They had reached the door of Brawly's gym, and he wordlessly held the door open for her. Bianca noted the silence and decided to wait until they had both entered to walk through the doors.

"Halt!" A girl with a lithe body and a fierce expression planted herself in front of them. "If you wish to challenge Brawly, you must first "

"We don't want to challenge Brawly," Touko interrupted. "We need to talk to him about the thief."

"Oh." The girl huffed in disappointment. "Well, I'll show you in, then. Follow me." She turned and led them through a maze of dark passageways, with Touka following close to her heels impatiently.

"Yo, Louise! Are these challengers?" Brawly greeted them with a friendly grin.

"No, they're here to talk to you about the thief, apparently."

"Ah, him! He was incredibly impressive, I must say. His eh, what was it called again? A Hydreigon, I think yes, that dragon Pokemon knocked out my Hariyama in one hit! None of my Pokemon would have stood a chance!"

"What..." Touko felt a lump form in her throat, and she cleared her throat impatiently. "What did he look like? Did he talk?"

"Surprisingly, not much. He looked like he would be a complete chatterbox From his voice, though, I think he was no older than, say, seventeen. I couldn't see his face or hair, but he had cheerful brown eyes." Brawly nodded in satisfaction. "He was a worthy opponent, indeed."

N was about to say something, but Touko didn't notice and asked anxiously, "Did he have any other Pokemon with him?"

"Six Pokeballs. I think he used a Crobat to fly away, but I'm not sure. Say," Brawly looked at her carefully. "You seem to have a suspicion as to who the thief is. Do you?"

"N-no, I merely was curious," Touko answered defensively.

Brawly didn't answer, but after a moment's silence, he shook his head. "That thief had his reasons for not challenging me to a proper battle, and you seem to have your own reasons for chasing him. I won't pry. I honor those who are strong enough to withstand the burden of such secrets. But I must warn you, some memories are better left as simply memories. Some secrets are darker than you want to know about. Heartache, grief, anger... They will disrupt the waves of your mind."

"That doesn't make much sense," Touko said with a tense smile. She turned heel and walked away briskly, leaving N and Bianca to chase her.

They caught up to her at the beach, where she was sitting and throwing stones. There wasn't another soul in sight, not even any of the fishermen, but the roar of angry waves and the sharp splash of rocks hitting the water covered the silence. Bianca sat down next to Touka, and N awkwardly followed suit.

"You think the thief might be Touya?" Bianca asked quietly, much more subdued than usual.

"No. Maybe." Plop. Another stone, thrown with sudden ferocity, hit the water.

There was silence. "Why?" Bianca finally asked.

"He has a Hydreigon. It... I..." Touko's voice broke. "I've known it since he caught it seven years ago. And the Crobat. I remember his father catching it as a Zubat for him from another region."

"But why would he be in Hoenn?"

"Touya said often... He wanted to see the world. He said Hoenn was the most beautiful place in the world. There was so much sea and fresh air, so much of nature... Caves and volcanoes and underwater trenches." She sighed wistfully, painfully. "He said once that he wanted to come with me to explore the Dewford caves, then travel to Lavaridge and see the ash that looks just like snow. He wanted to go to Lilycove and surf to Sootopolis and dive for treasure. Bianca, he loved Hoenn. It was adventure to him."

"But why would he become a thief? It's not like him."

Touko's face twisted. "To prevent people from knowing his identity. To prevent me from going after him." _Because he's tired of me_, she thought, but saying it aloud would be like admitting it.

Neither N nor Bianca knew what to say in response. "Touko..." Bianca finally sighed. "Will you tell us what happened the night he disappeared? It's been two years and you haven't told anyone... Maybe talking will make you feel better. I know you hate to look weak, but I'm your friend, aren't I?" There was a desperate plea in that question. "You can depend on me, can't you?"

"I... he..." Touko lowered her head wearily. "It's a long story."

* * *

><p>2 Years Ago<p>

"Touya, Touya!" Touko ran excitedly towards her friend. "Tomorrow's the day we get to set off on our Pokemon journeys! Which Pokemon are you gonna choose?"

Touya laughed. "I already have Pokemon. I'll let you and Cheren and Bianca pick."

"Psh. Show-off." Touko stuck her tongue out at him. "It's no fair that we have to wait until we're fifteen to go on our journeys. Did you know that in Kanto, you can set out when you're ten?"

"Pfft. I can have adventure whenever I want," Touya remarked impishly.

"At other people's expense," she said, rolling her eyes before laughing. "I always feel so relaxed with you, Touya."

Touya grinned mischieviously. "Now, that's rather dangerous. Remember the time I threw water balloons at Cheren after he had just gotten his hair trimmed?"

Touko snickered. "Oh, yeah, that was hilarious. He was so mad afterwards."

Touya patted her on the head. "Serves him right for trying to win your heart in such an underhanded way."

"Oh, please, Mr. Drama King. You know he's got such a ridiculous crush on Bianca." She rolled her eyes and added, "Besides, how is that underhanded?"

"Well, for one thing," he said while plucking daisies absentmindedly, "guys are supposed to protect their princesses, not go around primping and fussing with their hair." He snorted. "Cheren looks so serious, but he's so vain."

"Girls don't need to be protected," Touko told him, elbowing him in the ribs. "We don't live in that age anymore."

"Hmm, even so, I don't want you to get hurt," Touya said rather seriously, or maybe he was kidding as usual. A shadow flickered in his eyes, but it was gone just as quickly.

Touko elbowed him again, trying to hide a blush that stained her cheeks. "Don't say ridiculous things. You're such a player, shorty."

Touya only laughed it off. "Whatever. To celebrate, let's go to the beach. It's your birthday, after all."

Touko smiled. "You remembered?"

They walked to the beach in contented silence, Touya always staying slightly ahead. He didn't walk too fast, and Touko almost reached for his hand several times.

"Hey, Touko?" Touya stopped walking, thwarting her most recent attempt, and gazed at the stars. "You know, you see the same stars in Hoenn and Kanto and Johto and Sinnoh... it's the same sky."

"Yeah. But we're all going to be traveling in Unova together." She blinked, confused.

"Yes... Have fun on your trip. Don't do anything dangerous. Don't get involved with anyone suspicious, either."

"Of course not." She punched him lightly. "I'm not stupid."

"No," he smiled at her affectionately. "Of course not. That's why I l " He stopped. "No, it's nothing."

"Wait!" Touko grabbed his shirt. "What were you about to say?"

"I said nothing!" Angrily, or perhaps desperately, he pushed her away, but gently. "Touko, I can't stay... I have to go now." His words lingered for a moment as he hesitated, but he shook his head and began to turn. Before he could leave, Touko grabbed his arm.

"Then I have something to tell you! I... I...!" She stopped, took a deep breath, and blurted, "I like you a lot! Or rather, I've loved you for years."

He froze. She couldn't see his face, but his breathing was ragged. "Look at me," Touko demanded, but he still didn't respond. She shook him, and slowly he turned to face her.

"I..." His face was a tumult of emotions, and suddenly, fiercely, he pressed his body to hers, holding her close. "I love you, Touko, I always will." He closed his eyes, and his embrace became more desperate. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry. I love you, but I'm sorry. I... Touko... the stars are the same everywhere. They are! Believe me. The same stars and the same sea. Please, remember. I'm sorry..."

His words didn't make any sense anymore, but the raw emotion, the bitterness and despair and desperation rendered her immobile. She was just about to speak as Touya suddenly released her from his grasp and ran. She reached for him but grasped nothing but air and watched his figure disappear into the night, her hand still outstretched, unable to say anything, unable to even cry for the hollowness that suddenly filled her.

* * *

><p>Woodenly, Touko stood up. Bianca tried to follow, but she shook her head, not trusting her voice. N watched as she disappeared into the darkness, stifling an urge to run after her.<p>

"I'm glad she's decided to tell the story, but she still won't depend on me," Bianca sighed. "I wonder if it's because I'm so useless..."

N blinked. "She doesn't depend on you? But... I thought friends..."

"That's what friends are supposed to do, but she's never cried in front of or talked about her fears with me or Cheren. I think the only one she's ever relied on is Touya, but he's gone. She's all alone, N," Bianca said sadly. "I wish I could do more. I wish I were stronger."

"Touya was very good with friends with her, wasn't he?" N felt a twinge of envy, an emotion that was none too strange to him.

"I suppose. He pranked every one of us constantly, but there's none of us that wouldn't walk on hot coals for him. He was very kind. I just don't get why he would leave the girl he loved, especially not right after she confessed." She twirled her hair sadly.

"He's her most special person, then? And she is his... Does that make her his girlfriend?" Yes, there was that twinge again. It wasn't a new feeling at all, he thought; he had envied the people on his journey their intimacy with each other, while he could only imagine it. But always, his obsession with being a Hero had stifled that envy, and now, without his protective blanket, it threatened to overwhelm him. "I suppose, then... that I-"

"Oh, no! He's not her boyfriend. They're not in a relationship. It's..." Bianca hesitated. "A bit complicated."

"Yes, it is rather complicated." N tilted his head, hiding his relief. "But didn't you say that all the necessary conditions were met?" He fingered the Menger sponge on his belt, trying to figure things out.

"He left her." Bianca ground her teeth in frustration. "He has no right to call her his."

"Oh." That was right. Touya had left her. Suddenly, he pictured her alone, crying into her pillow, or maybe simply lying there, looking in the direction of the sky without really seeing anything. "I have to go..." He realized, and without any further explanation, he left running towards the Pokemon Center, leaving Bianca on the sand.

"What should I do, then? I wish I were stronger..." Bianca whispered as she watched him disappear. "If only I could do something as well..." Her eyes followed N as he, too, disappeared into the darkness. "If only I could also..."

* * *

><p>N knocked on Touko's door hesitantly, his heart racing. How would she react? He bit his lip. Upon thinking it over, perhaps this wasn't the best plan. If she wouldn't confide in Bianca or Cheren, whom she had known all her life, why would she depend on him? Perhaps he should just go back and wait for morning so he could ask<p>

"N? Why are you here?" She had opened the door, and she was trying to scowl at him in an attempt to scare him away, but her eyes were red from unshed tears.

"Uh... I..." This was definitely a bad idea. He didn't know what to say to make her feel better. He had never tried to make anyone feel better before. Perhaps he really should leave...

Since when had he become this indecisive? He scolded himself mentally. He had to think of something...

"If you're just going to stand there with your mouth open like an idiot, go away." A slight tremor in her voice betrayed her act of toughness, though, and N found the words he wanted.

"I... I'm not strong enough to save all Pokemon. I can't solve the equation for changing the world. I've said something similar before."

Touko only regarded him suspiciously. "When you still wanted to take over the world," she said after a shaky breath.

"I said this, too: 'I need power. I will be the new hero. And you and I will be friends.'" He hoped that she understood what he meant.

She half-smiled. "I thought you were crazy back then." She hesitated, then mumbled, "Fine, come in, I suppose."

With a heavy sigh, she fell into her bed. N gingerly sat down next to her. He was at a loss for words again; this whole comforting business was difficult. For a moment, he wished Touko were a Pokemon, so that he would know how to talk to her properly. But she was his human friend. He fingered his cube again, fumbling for words.

Luckily, Touko spoke before him. "Touya was born just a day before me." She fell silent again.

"Ah..." Something comforting, something comforting...

"He never argued with anyone. Even though everyone always got mad at him after he played a trick on them."

More silence. N shifted uncomfortably.

"N, he was my best friend." Her voice broke and became a sob. He turned was astonished to see her crying. "It's not just that I love him. I need him. What will I do without him? I'm so alone. If I hadn't met you, if the fate of all Pokemon trainers hadn't depended on me, I would never have lasted through my whole journey. I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do..."

"Don't worry..." He patted her head awkwardly as he had done before, but it only made more tears spill out.

"You know, I only just barely defeated you that last time. In truth, I wasn't the real hero. That's why Zekrom wouldn't awaken until the last moment. He was waiting for Touya."

"What? That's impossible. Touya wasn't even near him. He chose you, Touko. Believe in yourself."

Her voice broke again, and her slender body trembled violently. "That's not true... The truth is, I saw him. I saw him right before I entered the Pokemon League, and he challenged me to a battle, and I never told anyone. N, he utterly defeated me without even having one Pokemon faint. Zekrom wanted me to deliver the stone to him, I'm sure of it. A hero of the legendary lightning dragon, afraid of thunder? What a joke! You wanted to hear the voices of Pokemon who love their trainers? His Zubat evolved straight into a Crobat without even bothering to stay as a Golbat! I was there, I saw it. N, I'm nothing. I can't do anything."

"Of course you can," he whispered fiercely. "Even if he beat you, you've beaten me, the former Champion. You've beaten Cheren, the current champion. You shouldered the burden of being the Hero all alone. You can't say that's nothing. Besides, I've heard Zekrom's voice, and all your Pokemon's voices. He knew that you were afraid of thunder all along. That's why he picked you because you can stand up to your fears. You can handle the burden of the fate of the world. Even if Touya is better at battling, so what? That's not all a hero does."

She said nothing, and he listened to her ragged breathing in silence.

"Please don't say you're nothing..." he whispered, not sure if she heard him.

Touko closed her eyes and leaned on his shoulder. They sat peacefully as the time sped by and her breathing calmed. After several minutes, Touko sighed and straightened up. "I'm sorry... I've never talked to anyone about any of this. Thank you..." She gave him a small, shaky smile and inhaled deeply.

He never got to tell her what he thought of her, N realized and sighed. But perhaps he was unraveling just one of the intricate patterns of human friendship... of Touko's thoughts.

But would he make it in time? He bit his lip. His gut instinct told him that something was going to happen soon, and he suspected that the "something" would have to do with Touya. If they met Touya, who would Touko choose?

Him... or Touya?

* * *

><p>Whoa I just realized that there are so many lines near the end... -_- I hope that doesn't bother anyone...<p>

Rawr prepare for even moar secrets next chapter XD

If you have a few minutes or even seconds, please pretty please review! :3 Whether it's good criticism or constructive criticism.

On a side note, I have a history project, an English essay, an English speech, a chemistry project, a French project, and two math tests (one of which is a final) within the next three weeks. D: Gah. Wish me luck. (But luckily, new chapters shouldn't be late because I procrastinate on homework and because I already have like a bajillion chapters written :D I wish I were that productive in everything else.)

Soooo... see ya next time?


	4. Chapter 4: Like and Love

Thank you to everyone who reviewed/fave'd/alert'd! XD That makes me very happy! If you ever have any questions, I'd love to answer them, too!

Oh shizz, this chapter is long. Well, not by that much. Stuff happens. And *gasp* Bianca is useful!

Remember that weird soda house place in Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald? Well, if you don't, here's a refresher course. =P I always wondered who taught that poor girl that song... It made me crack up every time. And yes, N gets drunk off of soda because it works that way. Sort of.

Anyways, enjoy!

* * *

><p>For a long time, N and Touko simply sat in silence in the darkness. Touko was the first one to break it. She sighed and put her head on her knees, murmuring, "What is a friend, anyways?"<p>

N looked at her in surprise. "Why would you ask that? Don't you already know?"

"I thought I did," she said wearily. "But... I don't know anymore. Is it wrong that I feel like I can't cry in front of Bianca or Cheren? Does that mean I feel like I can't trust them? Is it wrong that I ask my Pokemon friends to fight? Is it wrong that I relied on Touya so much? Is... is that why he left?"

N bit back his instinctive response, which was that of course it was wrong to make Pokemon fight. He thought for a while but simply shook his head. "I can't understand these human relationships," he answered unhappily.

Touko looked up at him curiously. "Then tell me about your Pokemon friends."

The request brought a nostalgic smile to his lips. "My Klinklang is so curious all the time. I befriended it right before I battled you at Chargestone Cave, and it wanted to stay with me to see the world. Whenever it sees anything colorful and bright, it clinks excitedly. And my Vanilluxe will do a little dance in the air whenever it snows. I've never seen any other Vanilluxe do that, did you know? And my Zoroark! I met him as a Zorua. The first thing he did was bite me." N laughed fondly. "He has this red spot right between his ears. Whenever I leave, he'll be waiting for me excitedly when I come back."

Touko had to smile as well. "He fought so viciously, I never would have guessed. But then, I didn't know him at all."

"That's what humans don't get," N said suddenly. "To you, my Zoroark is just like any other in the world, but to me, he is special, the only one just like him. Because I tamed him. I tamed him, and he tamed me. To him, my footsteps are different from the footsteps of any other human."

"But we do get it," Touko argued. "Those are the bonds between any trainer and her Pokemon. Those are the bonds between friends and lovers. It's just that for some people... it takes too much time to make bonds..."

N waited for her to elaborate, but she just sat in silence. He began to speak quietly. "I don't know, but from what I've seen in my travels, I think it's a wonderful thing. Friendship, that is."

"But he left," Touko whispered. "It's not wonderful. I lose. Because he's tamed me, and he's different than all the other humans in the world, but I couldn't tame him, and now he's gone. Wouldn't it all have been better if I had never met him?"

She wasn't talking about Pokemon anymore, he knew. For some reason, he didn't want to say anything good about Touya, but reluctantly, he sighed and said, "You didn't lose. You have memories. Beautiful memories. And when you look at the sea and the stars, you remember him. He gave you that. Perhaps he wanted you to remember them for a reason.."

Touko looked up, her eyes doubtful, but a glimmer of hope shone in them. "Do you think so?"

"Quite certainly." If he didn't believe it with all his heart, he would have told her to forget Touya, would have done anything to erase his existence. But there was a part of him that thought that, just maybe, it understood this "Touya's" feelings, even though they had never met, even though N knew little about what other humans felt. "I think... I might understand. Before I met you, I felt like there was nothing to the human world. It was colorless. All the same. But now, it feels colorful, and it scares me because I'm not used to it, but I wouldn't change it for anything. So even if you disappeared somehow, it would still all be worth it." He sighed and thought, _though I would move heaven and earth to find you first._

She regarded him thoughtfully, still doubtful, but his words had clearly soothed her somewhat. She understood. He had understood her, then.

But Touko clearly cared a lot about Touya, he thought, and from what he knew, Touya had cared a lot about her, too. That made sense, in a way; they had known each other all their lives. Yet N had only known Touko for two years. How was it possible that he could understand her feelings, could care for her in the same way? She was a "friend," wasn't that right?

* * *

><p>The next morning found Touko and Bianca in a small cake shop near Dewford hall. Despite its small size, it was equipped with a delightful array of desserts. Touko, who was sitting in a window seat facing the beach, shoved yet another piece of cake into her mouth. Five empty plates were stacked neatly to her right, and to her left, assorted deserts arranged neatly on flowery china cluttered the table.<p>

"Touko, you're eating too much..." Bianca laughed as her friend simply rolled her eyes and ignored her. "Where do you put it all?"

"It's called good metabolism and exercise," Touko answered between bites. "So spit it out. What's your motive for this suspicious... 'girls' night out'?"

"Why, my dear Tou-chan, how could you ever suspect me of any sort of malicious ulterior motive? I am as innocent as a Butterfree." Bianca giggled.

"Oh, really? I'd like to see you try." Touko finished her cake and reached for the next dessert in the queue, a delicious cream-filled fruit tart topped with enticing blueberry sauce. Before she could reach it, Bianca grabbed her friend's arm.

"Before you touch that tart, you will answer my interrogation!" She commanded imperiously, but her act fell apart as she broke into another fit of giggles.

Touko snorted. "You and I both know that there is no way you can stand between me and that delicious fruit tart with physical force. So please just get on with it."

"Alright. I'll be blunt. How do you feel about N?"

Touko stood up abruptly and nearly choked. "Wha ? I am not obliged to answer that ridiculous question." She began reaching for the tart. "Look, this shop just opened and am not wasting this cake sale on your nosiness."

"Fine, then. I suppose you don't mind if I intend to..." Bianca trailed off with a grin.

"Intend to what?" Touko raised an eyebrow and waited. When Bianca still did not speak, she scowled. "I don't have time for your games. Just let me eat my tart, okay?"

"Oh, Touka dear, you're so young and innocent in the ways of love," Bianca sighed dreamily. "Poor girl, lost in uncharted seas and, I think_, dodging the question_."

"Wha I am not. It's just too ridiculous... No, don't look like that Gah! Fine." She scowled at her friend's smug expression, her pride injured. "He's a friend. A really close friend, I guess, since I've known him since the start of my Pokemon journey. And I know about his past, too. It's kind of strange to be traveling with him and not worrying about him taking over the world, but it's nice in a way. He's... warm. It's sort of sweet that he doesn't know what to do sometimes, and he's reliable. I think that..." She trailed off and her eyes lost their focus. She quickly shook her head. "Anyways, he's a good friend."

"That's it?" Bianca asked expectantly. "Nothing more?" She arched an eyebrow like an investigator interrogating a suspect. In the realm of the love life, Bianca could be downright annoying.

"What else is there?" Touko asked, irritated. She grabbed her uneaten deserts and headed for the counter, where she had them packaged for her to take with her. "I, unlike you apparently, have important things to do."

"Hmm..." Bianca put a finger to her lips in thought as her friend walked out the door in a huff. "That didn't work, I think."

* * *

><p>A few hours later, the three of them were sitting around a map of the Hoenn region. Various other maps and papers were scattered all over the floor, and Bianca thumbed through a brochure while biting her hails in concentration.<p>

"We should go up to Slateport and travel to Lavaridge through Mauville," Touka decided, slamming her papers down.

"Lavar ? Oh, you can't mean to follow Touya's old travel plans!" Bianca exclaimed.

"I'm not," Touka argued defensively. "Lavaridge is a popular tourist destination. They have... well... special cookies."

"You shouldn't keep hoping that you'll just bump in to him, especially if he happens to be that thief." Bianca tugged at her hat worriedly.

"I'm not! Anyways, If I ever see him again, I plan to give him a piece of my mind!" Touko glared at Bianca.

"Really?" The blonde asked dubiously.

"Yes!"

"Well... I guess, then..." She glanced at N, who had stayed quiet the entire time. He looked from the map he was reading, a lollipop in his mouth, and shrugged, no emotion showing on his face.

"If we hurry, we can probably make it before dark. I'll ask Carracosta to take us. He's quite fast in the water." In truth, he did not like the idea of chasing after Touya's shadow, but it was what Touko wanted, after all. _And you wouldn't mind if she decided to break connections with him if she ever saw him again_, a small part of him whispered. But he ignored it.

By the beach, he released Carracosta from its Pokeball, and he and Touko climbed on. Bianca hung back, however, and shook her head. "I'll get there on Samurott," she told them. "Carracosta will get tired."

"Yes, that's true. Thank you for thinking of him." N flashed her a quick smile and whispered into the giant turtle's ear. Within minutes they were speeding off.

It did not take more than a few hours to get to Slateport with the two Pokemons' speed, but by the time they arrived, it was late nonetheless.

"Yo! Tough adventurers! Whether you're hot to trot or cool cat not, come chill at my papa's spot!" A little girl chanted her song as she danced around the door of a run-down hut. The rest of the beach was abandoned, but lights and laughter issued from the single building.

N had to duck to get in through the low doorway, but once in, the three of them found that it was actually rather spacious inside the hut. A dazzling array of soft lights lit up the straw spectacularly, and the smell of sweet soda pop permeated the entire room.

"Yo, adventurers! It's a bit too late for battling, but you're welcome to come in and chat," a tall man in a Hawaiian shirt greeted the trio as they entered. "Buy some pop?"

N wrinkled his nose at the mention of battling, but he soon forgot it at the mention of soda. "That sounds fascinating! I'd love to try one."

The man laughed, pleased, and handed the green-haired boy a bottle. "First one's on me, then, lad! You're never too old for soda pop, that's what I say."

N swished the contents of the bottle curiously and nearly dropped it as it exploded when he opened it, which caused a storm of laughter among the sailors in the hut. When they finally calmed down, one of them explained that shaking the bottle caused the bottle to explode when opened.

"Say, you're travelers, eh? Heard any news lately?" A sailor asked curiously. "We haven't pulled out of harbor in a week."

"We just got here from Dewford, so I doubt we have any news," Touko said dubiously as she sat down next to N, carefully avoiding any sticky wet spots from the soda. "We did hear that some thief stole a badge from Brawly's gym recently, though."

"Old news," a sailor with a particularly large gut waved his hand at them while scratching his stomach with the other. He sighed contendly and burped before continuing. "We heard that from a lass with violet hair who stopped by yesterday, aye."

"The thief has become quite popular lately," the first sailor told them. "He has already stolen gym badges from a lot of towns recently Rustboro, Mossdeep, Petalburg, Fortree... We've heard that he's even taken quite a few badges from Johto."

"Ah, is that so?" Touko murmured.

"Aye, but he always proves that his Pokemon are more than a match for the gym leader, so no one really thinks of it as stealing. Speaking of which, that lass from before said... what was it, now... I think she said that she heard some rumors that he was gonna appear in Mauville in two days."

"Mauville?" Touko exclaimed, standing up abruptly. "In two days?"

"Aye, I'd go meself, but I've another voyage tomorrow." He said sorrowfully, and the other sailors echoed his disappointment with nods and commiseratory sighs. "Not that any of us would want any other life."

"Um, yes, thank you very much," Touko said hastily in a sudden rush. "We've got to get going now. Come on, guys! It's getting late, and..."

N seemed to be having fun poking at the bubbles in his soda, and Bianca was giggling beside him. Every so often, he would manage to detach a bubble from the foam, and Bianca would clap excitedly. At Touko's words, he jumped to attention and hurried to catch up with her, not understanding her sudden haste.

"You bought twelve soda pops?" Touko laughed as she noticed his bag. "You must really like this stuff."

"Well, I've never seen any before..." he said, looking a bit hurt.

"Oh... I'm sorry, I didn't mean it that way," she apologized, biting her lip as she remembered his past. "Anyways, we should hurry to get some rest."

N nodded in agreement. "By the way, what did that sailor say?" He and Bianca clearly had not been listening.

"Oh, well..." she hesitated. "Not much... Um, let's try to get to Mauville by tomorrow, alright?"

"Aw, but think of all the cute stuff we can buy here," Bianca sighed. "It's not every day we get to come to Slateport..."

N agreed. "This is a port town! Think of all the things we could see and do here! Did you see that marketplace? And besides, I've always wanted to look at a lighthouse."

"Oh, fine..." Their pleas made Touko feel selfish about pushing on to Mauville, but she couldn't give it up. "Then let's at least get there by nightfall, alright?"

The two nodded and Touko felt a rush of relief. She frowned at told herself not to expect anything from Mauville, but she was excited nonetheless. It was probably unhealthy.

"Hey, Touko! Touko!" Bianca shook her sleeping friend. "N and I are going shopping first, 'kay?"

"Do whatever the hell you want," Touko groaned with a tired scowl and turned around to go back to sleep.

Bianca rolled her eyes and exited her room. She waved to N, who was petting his Zoroark. When he saw her, he crooned a loving good-bye to the Pokemon before sending him back to his Pokeball.

"White doesn't want to go?" he asked, unable to keep the disappointment from his voice.

Bianca giggled. "Oh no, she's far too much of a late sleeper for that. She's such a Beartic in the morning. We probably have at least three hours before she decides to join us; I've never seen her get up earlier than 10:00 of her own free will."

"Hm," N replied neutrally.

They walked quickly to the market stalls. He found all sorts of items, from Carbos to different colored bricks, which he found no use for, although he did see a Torchic doll which somehow reminded him of Touko. When he made sure that Bianca wasn't looking, he quickly bought the doll while worrying that his masculinity was at risk.

They wandered around for a bit more before Bianca exclaimed, "Let's go to the beach!"

He obliged distractedly while still worrying that his doll was going to be found out, so her question hit him from out of the blue.

"So... how do you feel about Touko?"

"Uhh... I..." he stared at her blankly. "What?"

Bianca rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean."

"She is... a very important friend..." he said tentatively. He glanced at Bianca, but she only raised an eyebrow expectantly. "I suppose... she is very special...?" No comment from the little blonde still. "I sort of get irritated when she talks about Touya, I guess."

"Aha!" Bianca shouted triumphantly. "Why is that?"

"Hm, well..." N frowned, considering the question quite seriously. "I believe that perhaps I wish I cared about someone as much as that."

Exasperated, Bianca threw her arms in the air. "Oh, for the love of Arceus, why do I get two complete idiots to work with?"

"I'm not an idiot," N frowned, offended. "I know I don't have much experience with humans, but I "

"Oh no, _that_ has nothing to do with it." She was in her element now, and she was no longer the timid girl that she always seemed to be. "Fine, then let me ask this: what do you think is your relationship with Touko?"

"A very good friend," he answered immediately.

"And me?" she asked impatiently.

"A very good friend," he answered again.

"By the way, have I told you about Cheren?" She suddenly lit up and started gushing, "He's the sweetest person in the whole world. He seems so vain and stuck up, but really, he just wants to prove himself. It's so cute, really, how he tries to be the best all the time. Did you know that he gave me this adorable handmade Munna pillow once? You wouldn't know it, but he's actually really pro at sewing!" She giggled a bit giddily, her face turning pink.

"Is that so?" N said absentmindedly, feeling much less self-conscious of his Torchic doll. "It is acceptable to give such gifts to a girl?"

"Yes, but that's not the point. The point is that I l-love Cheren, very much so." Bianca stated, jabbing him in the stomach, but not very hard.

"Oh. Well, that's great, I guess." He said blankly, not understanding her point at all.

"Are you irritated? Jealous?"

"Oh... well, no..." he admitted. "But I still don't understand.

"You're not jealous because you want a close friend, you're jealous because you wish Touko thought of you in the same way that she talked about Touya." Bianca jabbed him again.

"Oh," he said for the billionth time that day. After thinking it over, he shrugged. "I suppose that's a possible reason. But I still don't understand why. Touko is just a friend to me."

"Can you say that for sure?" Bianca challenged.

"Well... I've only had a few, so I can't be sure, but..." His voice became hesitant.

"Fine, then." Bianca grabbed N's arm and dragged the protesting boy to a nearby swimmer girl. "This his N," she said, introducing him to the girl, who was sunbathing.

The girl looked up and took off her sunglasses. "Well, hello!" She giggled for some inexplicable reason. "You look rather nice."

"Thanks..." N answered a bit hesitantly, sensing a catch in her words.

"Would you like to battle?" the girl offered excitedly. "I'd love to see your skills."

N frowned. "I couldn't possibly," he said, backing away a bit. "Pokemon aren't tools to play with."

The girl only smiled. "That's rather sweet. I'm not using them as tools, though. My Azumarill loves competing, don't you?" She petted the blue furball next to her lovingly.

N shrugged. Pokemon that loved to battle were just one of those ideas that he had reluctantly grown to accept but could not fully embrace. He had recently gotten over his aversion to Pokeballs since his Pokemon had assured him that they were at least as comfortable, if not more so, than the outside world, but he refused to battle for recreation. He only battled with his partners to protect the most important things.

"I can see you won't change your mind," the swimmer observed, them smiled sweetly. "Would you like to sit down and talk for a bit? Unless you're busy, of course."

Bianca nudged him discreetly, so he sighed and agreed. "What would you like to talk about?"

She laughed and chose a topic, and they chatted for more than an hour. N finally said good-bye to her shortly after ten and found Bianca at the marketplace again.

"So, what did you think of the girl?"

"Her name is Maria. She's nice," he shrugged. "A nice friend, I suppose."

"Compared to Touko? Who do you care about more?"

He scowled. "I've known Touko for more than two years. Of course I care about her more. I don't see your point," he said, frustrated.

"Oh, fine, then. If you still don't get it, then I have no other choice." It was a risky option, but N was too innocent to understand it any other way. She grabbed his shirt and stood on her tiptoes, wrapping her free arm around his neck to pull his head down. Her lips were only a few inches from his when he realized what she was doing and pushed her away in alarm.

"What are you doing?" He almost shouted, shocked. "You're only supposed to k-k...kiss someone you really love."

"Exactly," Bianca said smugly. "Don't be so alarmed, I like Cheren. I wouldn't do it with anyone other than him."

"Then why?"

"To prove something to you. Think about it. What would you have done if it had been Touko?"

He just stared at her in astonishment for a few seconds, but then his face turned bright red and he stammered unintelligibly for a while before finally regaining his composure a bit and coughing out, "I-I don't see what you're trying to prove. That has nothing to do with anything." With a huff, he turned and quickly began to walk away.

Bianca was about to let him go, but she saw something from the corner of her eye and called out, "Wait!"

As he turned, she grabbed his hand and whispered in his ear, "If you play along, you'll see something good."

He looked confused but shrugged, though he still held her hand gingerly. As he was too busy trying to forget that he was holding Bianca's hand, he didn't notice at all as Touko approached.

"Well, um, you two look... close." She was struggling to keep her face neutral, and there was an unnatural edge in her voice. "Bianca, I thought you liked Cheren?"

"Did I, now?" She sighed and appeared to think for a while. "Oh, but N is pretty cute, too, don't you think?"

N shifted his feet uncomfortably. He wasn't sure what Bianca was planning, and he didn't want to trick Touko. He opened his mouth to speak, but Bianca cut him off. "But, Touko, you have Touya, right?" N frowned. He didn't like that topic.

"Err... well..." Her eyes travelled to the side as if looking at something, and then down to her feet. "Oh, well, that..." she gestured vaguely at something.

Bianca smiled. "Jealous?"

"What?" Her friend's head snapped up, and her glare was not a friendly one. "You... you were tricking me!"

"I wasn't," Bianca said, smiling innocently. "Did I say anything that was untrue?"

"And you!" She shot at N, storms in her eyes. "I'd have thought you more sensible than that! Going along with one of Bianca's schemes!" She turned and stormed away, and looking at her small back, he realized that she was only trying to hide her insecurity and shock.

"Wait!" N tried to stop her, but she was soon lost in the throng of market-goers. He gave chase, thanking the heavens for his height, which caused everyone to instinctively walk around him. Nonetheless, it was difficult, and it took him a good ten minutes before he reached the end of the stalls and found Touko walking towards the beach angrily. He reached for her arm hastily.

"What are you doing?" She glared, trying to pull her arm free.

"Wait! I wanted to say that I'm sorry! I didn't know what Bianca was planning..." He trailed off feebly, still feeling guilty.

She kept glaring at him for several moments, then relented and sighed. "Fine. I'm not mad at you. Just Bianca and her silly games."

"Mmm... Would you like to visit the lighthouse?" He offered.

She frowned and shrugged and was about to answer when she realized something. "Oh! We have to get to Mauville!"

"Why?" N asked, an uneasy feeling in his stomach.

"Oh, well..." Touko said uncomfortably. "I..."

"Can't we go to the lighthouse first? And you still haven't seen the marketplace or the beach."

"Fine," she sighed, and they headed off towards the small street that lead to the lighthouse.

It was very small, and it only had two stories, but a large yellow globe on the rooftop glowed with an impossibly bright light, even though it was daytime. N touched the bright stone in wonder. "It's not warm," he said in surprise.

Touko peered at it curiously. "What makes it glow? It's not electricity..."

A man had just walked up the stairs, and he overheard the question, replying, "Oh, that? It's a special type of rock that never stops glowing. It's quite rare, but it can be seen for miles. We got it as a gift from a very famous person. You might had heard of him Steven Stone, son if the head of Devon Corporation? He used to be the Champion, too.

"Wow..." Touko breathed.

N frowned for a second. "Steven Stone..." he muttered. The name was incredibly familiar. He remembered hearing it recently.

"Indeed," the man chuckled and gazed out at the sea. "It can be seen for miles in the sea. Isn't that wonderful? It shines like a star on the same sea that connects everything."

That sounds like something Touya would say, Touko thought, and N noticed as well. "Let's check out the markets together," he suggested, and Touko shrugged.

As the walked back over, he remembered something and pulled the Torchic doll out of his bag. "This is for you," he said, offering it to the brunette. "It sort of reminded me of you, so I bought it."

"Oh...!" She took the doll in her fingers and turned it carefully. "It's so adorable! Thank you..." She smiled at him warmly, and he thought his heart might have skipped a beat.

"Er, you're welcome," he mumbled, and walked faster to hide his confusion.

Touko followed running, and they quickly arrived at the market. It was already afternoon, so the place was much less crowded. There were several game stalls set up for the children who liked to come at this time, and the two of them visited all of them, although neither of them won anything.

"Let's go visit the contest house!" Touko pointed excitedly when they were done, and N obliged.

They spent another couple of hours engrossed in the dazzling displays and battles of the coordinators and their Pokemon, and even N had to agree that contests brought out the best in those Pokemon as far as beauty and skill were concerned. Before they realized it, it was already dark.

"Oh! We should... hurry," Touko sighed without actually caring that much.

"Do we have to?" N didn't want to let her go, feeling as if something terrible would happen if he did. He had learned to trust such feelings.

"Well..." Touko shrugged and sighed again. "I suppose... not..." She bit her lip. She had wanted to with all of her heart before, but somehow, here, she did not mind so much. So what if the thief was Touya? He had left her. She didn't need to care about him anymore.

N smiled in relief.

* * *

><p>Elsewhere, an impatient figure scowled and paced. He stopped as a violet-haired girl approached him and bowed. "So?" He demanded.<p>

"I'm sorry, master. She did not appear."

"You're sure the message was delivered correctly?"

"Yes, sir. I stayed at the soda shop to make sure." She kept her head lowered as she spoke.

He glared at nothing in particular. "Fine. We'll have to do this later, then. You are dismissed, Janine." The girl nodded and walked out swiftly.

"This 'N'... Is he the one who pulls my target away from me?" The figure's eyes narrowed discontentedly. "But it doesn't matter. Next time, I will make sure that my plan DOES succeed."

* * *

><p>Annd, now it's over. :D<p>

Overused villain scene ftw! =P Anyone figure out who the girl is? She is an actual video game character. I'm not much of a fan of writing OCs into fanfics.

Also, if anyone noticed, the first scene was based off of a chapter of The Little Prince, which is this really awesome children's-book-esque novel thing. If you haven't read it, I recommend that you do. XD You can just google it to get the English translation. Of course, if you're able, you should read the original French because it sounds much prettier. You might think it's boring though. It's one of those things that you either get and feel with your very soul and it just _clicks_ and love or don't get and feel that it's very meh.

So... anyways... please review! XD


	5. Chapter 5: Ghosts and Shadows

Sorry, a bit late. You can blame stupid SAT testing. XD I'm pretty sure I failed the chem portion, but at least world history was pretty good. Soo... anyways. Chapter 5. It's pretty short, but meh. Also, this is where the T rating starts to show, so... yeah.

Enjoy! XD

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><p>After a few hours of walking, the trio finally arrived at Mauville. Signs of the thief's presence were everywhere; bright posters and flyers with a picture of a shadow were found on every possible inch of flat surface—and even draped on nonflat surfaces—and the newspaper headlines screamed of a stolen badge.<p>

What was even more surprising, however, was that almost as soon as they stepped onto the city streets, a mob of strangely dressed people almost knocked Touko and Bianca over as they ran to huddle around N. After a few seconds, Touko blinked and realized that they were all wearing Team Plasma uniforms.

"Oh, my King! You are here to guide us again!" One of the grunts said, almost on the verge of tears.

"Erm, no, actually... I broke my ties with Team Plasma," N explained cautiously, expecting some sort of violence.

Instead, the grunts only gave a horrified cry and begged, "Oh, you musn't! We've been waiting for you for all this time! We overthrew Ghetsis and waited for your arrival to lead us into the light!"

"You overthrew Ghetsis?" N asked, blinking.

"Oh, yes," one of the grunts nodded vigorously. "As soon as you left, he began reversing all of your hard work and making everyone prepare to take over the world. Most of us joined to save Pokemon... we couldn't possibly condone that. There were some grunts that were power-hungry, but we expelled them from the group."

"Then... who's running Plasma now?" N asked, confused. "And why are you here, in Hoenn?"

"The other sages fled before Ghetsis took over, so right now Anthea and Concordia are keeping things going, and they ordered us to come and aid you in whatever you were going to do, as well as save any Pokemon that needed help. Things have been going well. But, my King, without you, Plasma has no goal, no vision! Please, come back!"

"I..." He hesitated and glanced at Touko. "I don't have a vision myself anymore," he admitted. "I need time to find a new dream. Give me time to find my purpose in life, a purpose that's good for all. Trust in me and listen to Anthea and Concordia for now."

The grunts bowed. "Very well. We shall trust that whatever your Majesty decides will be good for all Pokemon. If you ever need assistance, there are Plasma members in each city and town. Although..." the grunt frowned. "Watch out for Team Rocket. They have recently been increasing here as well, and they have been very hostile to Plasma members."

"Thank you," N said gratefully. "I will remember that and never let your faith be in vain." He nodded at the grunts, and, after another bow, they turned and left.

There was silence for a while before Touko said wryly, "Looks like you're king of Plasma again."

"Yes..." N ran his fingers through his hair. "It felt so free while I wasn't, but I think that this is my place, my destiny. The burden is somehow 'mine,' and I intend to keep it."

Touko shrugged ruefully, "Whether I like it or not, it fits you. I just hope that we'll be on the same side this time."

N nodded. "I do as well." Without thinking, his hand reached for hers, and their fingertips brushed. Alarmed, he withdrew his hand hastily and began to apologize, but, even more surprisingly, she caught his hand and grasped it tightly.

Neither of them said anything for a moment, but when N dared to glance at Touko, he saw that she was staring at her feet, her cheeks bright red.

Bianca, who had gone off wandering when no one was looking, had started to run back with several flyers in hand, and Touko quickly snatched her hand back.

"Look at this!" Bianca said, waving her flyer triumphantly. "Details about the break in last night!"

Touko took one and started reading. "Break-in at Mauville gym... Extremely strong Pokemon, some from faraway Unova region... Gym leader impressed..." she muttered as she skimmed through the text. Her eyes stopped and rested at one line in particular. "Thief hinted at a break-in in nearby Lavaridge soon..." Out of habit, her eyes widened and she snapped her head up to look at Bianca.

"Do you want to go?" The blonde asked quietly. N frowned. He felt that tingling in his gut again, as if something bad was going to happen.

Touko opened her mouth to speak, but a confused look suddenly flashed on her face. "I... I don't know."

"The trip wouldn't take long," Bianca told her.

The conflicted brunette just stood there for a long time and then sighed. "I think I want to end this, Bianca. It's ridiculous. I'm tired. I want to look at the future."

Bianca grinned hugely and hugged her friend to the point of almost choking her. "Let's leave, then!"

"Already?" Touko asked blankly.

"Oh, yes! I heard that Lavaridge has amazing sights!" Bianca gushed. "And a hot spring!"

N frowned. He wanted to stop them, but he thought that perhaps the nagging feeling in his stomach was pure paranoia. After all, if Touko had decided to end things, what could happen? A bit reluctantly, he brought out his Archeops while Touko called her Mandibuzz.

They flew steadily over the rocky terrain, and as they began to near the volcano, a fluffy gray substance began to fall lightly. "Ash!" Touko exclaimed delightedly, holding her hand out. "It's so soft!"

"I heard you can make all sorts of things with collected ash," N remarked, but he was also busy grabbing at the ash flakes in childish amazement, laughing in delight as a speck landed on his nose.

"Look! Lavaridge!" Bianca pointed at a small town below. "We're already there!" As usual, she clung to Mandibuzz's neck as the Pokemon began to descend rapidly. Touko only laughed and then sneezed as her face was bombarded with the fluffy ash.

They touched down softly and slid off of their Pokemon before wandering off to explore. The most curious place they saw was a small shop selling Pokemon herbs, so they headed in its direction.

Touko was the first one to enter, and she pushed the door open carefully, looking around the small, dark, dusty room. There were boxes and shelves everywhere, and they were crammed with dried plants and powders.

At the sound of their footsteps, an old man hobbled out of a small, inconspicuous door in the corner behind the counter. He looked at the three, and his eyes widened when he looked at Touko; but then, his eyes were so small anyways that it could have been a trick of the light. The old man waved at them to wait for a second before picking up a phone and muttering something into it. After a couple of nods, he put the phone back down and looked up at the Pokemon trainers.

"So," he wheezed, rubbing his hands excitedly, "What brings such young folk like you here?"

"We're just touring," N told him with a bit of a frown on his face. For some reason, he thought he didn't trust the man; his shifty eyes seemed to hide some gleeful secret. Mentally, N scolded himself as he realized that he was just judging the man based on his looks.

"What kind of herbs to you sell?" Bianca asked excitedly. "Anything that we don't have in Unova?"

The man grinned toothlessly and turned to his shelves before picking out a few packages. "Energy Powder, Revival Herb, Heal Powder... take your pick."

Bianca sighed. "You can get those at Driftveil, though."

The old man furrowed his eyebrows and huffed, then hobbled back into the back room. Moments later, he returned with a box and began unloading it on the counter. "Fine then, if you insist... here are some of my rarest wares. Sleep Powder and Stun Spore, collected from various grass Pokemon. The Parasect type is the strongest, and it was imported specially from Kanto. There's also Attract and Captivate essence, made from crushed Luvdisc scales and various herbs. Of course, my greatest invention and treasure..." he shivered with pride, his eyes bulging, as his shaky, knobbly fingers pulled out a small red pouch. "Ghostwater."

As he slowly pulled out a small vial full of a clear, violet liquid, Touko shuddered and felt a chill go down her spine. "What is that?" She asked, at once repulsed by its aura and frightened by the power she felt emanating from it.

"It's made by liquifying, distilling, and refining the gaseous aura of Ghost Pokemon," the old man said, a hysterical edge to his awed whisper. "My usual batches are made from regular Ghastlys and such, but this particular batch is made from the aura of the legendary Giratina." He wrinkled his nose suddenly. "I had another one, but a rather unpleasant man bought it."

"Hmm..." Touko laughed nervously and backed away slowly.

"Wait! Young miss, you look very pretty," he cackled, holding out the crystalline vial, which was carved with an intricate design and suspended on a golden chain. Aside from the strange liquid in it, it was very beautiful and looked rather expensive. "I feel that you have a, eh, certain darkness about you... Wouldn't you be perfect for this?"

"Well, I don't really need..." Touko's voice began to shake and dwindle, and her head spun. Though her instincts screamed at her not to accept the vial, her hand slowly reached for the chain and lowered it over her head, letting the necklace clink before settling into place.

The moment the crystal touched her skin, her screaming senses went silent. Touko leaned on the counter for a moment in dizziness, but soon she got up, feeling completely normal, if a bit drained. She shook her head and said in a dazed voice, "Thank you... It's lovely."

"Touko? Are you okay?" N asked, concern in his voice.

She smiled at him widely, her expression wooden like a doll's. "Now, why wouldn't I be okay?" She laughed, but her laugh was nothing but a sound, a prerecorded voice.

N looked like he wanted to say more, and he glanced at the old man, but a voice outside interrupted him.

"Break-in at the gym!" A trainer hollered, running up the slope. "The thief has appeared!"

Quick as a flash, Touko grabbed N's hand and ran with him in the direction of the gym, with Bianca in close pursuit. They reached it before the rest of the crowd, though they were already several police officers.

The shadow of the thief could be seen on the rooftop of the gym. There were no trees nearby buildings that the thief could jump onto, and the gym was completely surrounded. Despite the fact that it seemed as if there was no way for the thief to escape, the thief did not seem worried at all; indeed, the shadowy figure did not even move.

When Touko arrived, however, the figure's head moved to look at her. Nimbly, the thief jumped onto the ledge of the gym's roof so that Touko could see the figure clearly. The shadowy figure's eyes seemed to bore into hers for a moment before the thief ripped off her mask in one swift moment.

There was silence and a flurry of whispers. A violet-haired girl looked down coldly at the crowd. The bottom of her face was still obscured, so it was impossible to tell who she was, but it was clear that the girl was not Touya. As Touko stared, frozen, her mouth agape, the thief reached for a Pokeball and released a Crobat. Before the police had realized what she was about to do, she grabbed on to the Crobat's feet and disappeared, and the belated cry of "Halt!" simply hung uselessly in the warm mountain air before being blown away by a cold breeze.

Bursting with renewed life, the crowd began to disperse, vigorous whispers and excited chatter while Touko simply stood there, her eyes still wide.

"Did you see that girl? And everyone said it was a boy all this time!"

"Doesn't she look a bit like Janine from the Fuschia gym?"

"Silly, what would a gym leader do with stolen gym badges?"

"How strange, the thief didn't use her Hydreigon this time? I wanted to see a Pokemon from a different region..."

"Wow, I've never heard of the thief coming so early in the evening, though. It only just got dark a while ago."

The snippets of chatter floated right past Touko's deaf ears, as disappointment froze her mind. She had thought that Touya had to be the thief...

"Are you okay, Touko?" Bianca asked, concerned. "That must have been a shock..."

Touko sighed and shook her head, still dizzy. "I'm fine. I wanted to see Touya to tell him I wanted to end things, anyways. I don't mind that much that it wasn't him, it's just... I want so much to know how he's doing. If he's even alive. Where is he? Why did he leave me?"  
>She signed again. "I suppose we just weren't meant to meet again."<p>

"I'm glad you're back to normal, though," N commented in relief. "You were acting strange back at the herb shop..."

"Oh... Well, yes... I'm sorry, I just got too superstitious," Touko laughed, this time for real. "I feel perfectly normal now, although I am a bit tired from all this excitement.

"Oh, that's perfect!" Bianca exclaimed excitedly. "Lavaridge's Pokemon Center has a hot spring for us humans to rest in."

"Really?" Touko grinned in anticipation. "I haven't been to one of those in ages! I can't wait!"

"You go first," Bianca told her. "I want to go look at the shops a bit more first. I wonder where those famous cookies are...?" She sighed wistfully and wandered off.

"I'll go get rooms, then," N offered, and Touko nodded. As he turned to leave, however, she grabbed his hand. "Do you need anything?" He asked quizzically, surprised and a bit happy for some reason.

"Oh, n-no... Not really." She fidgeted and loosened her grip, waiting for him to shake her off. When he didn't, she just shrugged with her other shoulder and said vaguely, "I, um... Just wondered... If you knew where the, uh, those... things..."

"The Pokemart?" N asked, confused.

"No! Oh, um, yes, right. The Pokemart. I... might need some things..." She was still fiddling with the hem of her shirt with one hand, the fingers on her other hand laced around N's.

Even more confused now, he pointed at a blue sign nearby. She began drawing circles with her foot in the red dirt and cleared her throat. After a few moments of silence, she looked up to meet his puzzled eyes of warm green - of sunlit grass in a gentle breeze. Her own eyes were lost, confused, so vulnerable, and in a split second, some part of him told him to embrace her, surround her, shield her, protect her.

Caught in a sudden tight hug, Touko blinked rapidly and blushed, stammering. N quickly pulled back, afraid of overstepping, and she felt lost again. Without thinking, she leaned into him and lifted her face, and he stroked her hair softly. Their lips were inches apart, and his warm breath was reassuring and safe. It was life, kindness, the shelter from the storm.

But then confusion and worry flashed on his face, and he sighed, pulling himself up. Touko looked up, her dreamy state broken, and shook her head to clear her thoughts.

"Then we'll meet up later," she said, coughing and hiding her burning face. Tiredly, she made her way to the Pokemon center, ducking through the bamboo blinds to the springs outside.

There were two changing room, and Touko entered the women's room, quickly shedding her clothes and dumping them unceremoniously in a locker before grabbing a towel and wrapping it around her slender body. She smiled as she felt her smooth skin, glad that it had not dried up on the journey. It was probably because of the huge amounts of cake that she ate. Cake had milk in it, didn't it? It was a miracle that she was still so thin, she thought wryly.

Carefully stepping so as not to slip on the wet rocks, she sunk into the blissfully warm water in relief. The steam had a sharp, bitter smell, but it was faint, and it was probably due to the natural chemicals in the spring water. She sighed and inhaled deeply, feeling her head spin from the steam and warmth. Her body tingled slightly.

Strangely enough, there was no one else in the springs. That was good, because it was a coed pool, and Touko didn't think she had the nerve to bathe with old men, or even young ones, for that matter. Her face turned bright pink as she imagined N coming with her, and she shook her head furiously to dislodge the thought. N wouldn't even notice the fact that they were both fully unclothed. Or maybe he would; he had held her hand tightly and hugged her... but holding hands and other th-things were different. Why else would he have refused to kiss, then? But she chased away those thoughts.

Slowly, Touko felt her muscles relax, even the ones that she hadn't thought could be tense. The bitter steam was getting to her head now, and her body was so loose that she could barely move, not that she wanted to. It felt heavenly. If only it wasn't making her feel so sleepy...

She frowned, jarred out of her blissful state. Why was she feeling sleepy? She was tired, she supposed, but nonetheless, she felt a bit paranoid. Cautiously, she tried moving her arm. It didn't budge. It wasn't just that her body was loosening, she was loosing control over her body. If it weren't for the grogginess that covered her thoughts, she would have been alarmed, but she couldn't feel anything at the moment.

Her thoughts were slipping, slipping... She struggled as darkness began clouding her field of vision, but it was no use. _Hot springs weren't supposed to smell bitter_, she realized. That smell was the smell of herbs.

Her last conscious thought before she lost consciousness was, _N is going to worry now..._

"Touko?" N frowned, looking around the spring. There was no reply, but that much would have been obvious, as there was no one in the pool. Had she left already? It hadn't even been a full hour yet, and it usually took her at least forty-five minutes to even take a regular bath.

Flipping open his Xtranceiver, he decided to call Bianca and waited impatiently as the phone rang several times, remembering that the klutzy teen often forgot to answer it.

To his relief, she finally did. "Hello? N?" Her voice sounded through the speaker of the small device although her face was obscured by the darkness.

"Have you seen Touko?" He asked worriedly.

"No." There was a pause. "Is she gone?"

"Yes." N knit his eyebrows in concern.

He waited, and Bianca's voice sounded again. "I can't reach her Xtranceiver, but Musharna says she can hear Touko's voice faintly. That means she's dreaming."

Dreaming? He sighed and hung up after a good-bye, checking the lobby and the cafeteria of the Pokemon center. There was no Touko there, either. Frowning, he looked outside and even in their rooms, just in case she had somehow psychically found out their room numbers. Or she could have asked an office worker, he supposed.

His search still produced no results, and, worried, he headed back towards the spring. A nurse had brought out a bundle of clothes, and she spotted him.

"Do you know who these belong to? I thought someone might have forgotten them, since there's no one in the pool right now."

His heart nearly stopped. "Those are Touko's," he realized, his eyes wide.

"Oh, good! Can you return them to her?" the nurse asked cheerfully.

N stared dumbly at the pile. "I hope..." he whispered, unwrapping it.

In the middle was a doll. He fingered the fluffy fur of the familiar plush toy with a rising feeling of dread. It was Touko's Torchic doll.

* * *

><p>And so that's that. XD Touko gets kidnapped! Ghostwater doesn't actually exist, btw. I was originally gonna go with something like crushed Ghost plates (you know, those things that Arceus holds) but then I decided... where the hell would he get that? So, not anymore. Well, anyways, please review! And see you next week. XD<p> 


	6. Chapter 6: Dreams and Nightmares

Rawr. Another chapter. XD I'm gonna be on vacation next week, though, so no update. I swear that everything in this chapter is important (or will be). There's no senseless violence. I actually didn't want to drag it out that long, but it would be unnatural if I just brushed through it... so yeah. Also... so much scene-switching... Gah.

Anyways, enjoy! Or something.

* * *

><p>Touko woke up in a dark, dusty room with the familiar but now repulsive scent of bitter herbs. It was probably the room behind the counter in the old herbalist's shop, she guessed. He had done this? No wonder he had so many strange powders and things. What did he want? she wondered nervously.<p>

She wriggled and felt her wrists. They were tied tightly behind her back with strong rope, and her ankles were also tied together, the rope digging into the skin of her bare feet. She was gagged and blindfolded as well. Someone was very careful.

She remembered with a jolt that she had gone unconscious at the hot springs, and it was unlikely that her kidnapper would have known where her clothes were. She tried to figure out what she was wearing, but all she could feel was some sort of light fabric on her skin. It might have been a piece of cloth wrapped around her for all she knew. Angrily, she kicked at the air, but it didn't loosen the ropes or even break anything.

She froze when she heard voices coming from the next room. There was a gruff voice and a cold female one, as well as the rasp of the old herbalist.

"You have her?" the female voice asked.

"Yes, of course. My treasures always do their job." That was the herbalist.

"Excellent. Team Rocket will reward you handsomely."

Touko's blood ran ice-cold at the mention of Team Rocket. They were notorious for their cruelty. Why was Team Rocket in Hoenn? Their base was on the Johto/Kanto island. What did they want? A ransom from N? And he would pay it, too, unless it involved harming Pokemon. No, perhaps even if it did... How much was friendship worth to him? She couldn't let that happen. She had to escape.

As she heard footsteps approaching, she let her head hang limply, pretending to be unconscious.

"Carry her to the truck," the female voice commanded. Heavy footsteps sounded next to her, probably belonging to the man with the gruff voice. Strong arms lifted her up easily as if she weighed nothing.

Seizing her chance, she elbowed the man, who dropped her in surprise. Blind and tied up, she crawled as fast as she could in the direction that they had been taking her. Her heart dropping, she realized that she couldn't possibly escape at this rate, but she knew she couldn't allow herself to be taken onto the truck to who-knows-where.

Her fears were confirmed when the man effortlessly overtook her in a few long strides. She thrashed and struggled, but without the element of surprise on her side, he held her slender body easily. It didn't help that she was unable to punch or kick or even bite.

"Just use the drug," the female voice snapped, irritated. "I don't want her struggling all the way there.

Before she knew what was going on, Touko felt a prick on her arm, and then her body stilled. There was no struggle this time; her mind went blank almost as soon as the needle punctured her skin.

This time when she woke, she was neither blindfolded nor gagged, though she was still bound. The rhythmic rocking of the room along with the occasional jolt told her that she was on a truck. The room was dimly lit, but spacious and rather clean.

She looked down. As she had guessed, she was wearing nothing but a piece of white cloth wrapped around her body a few times and tied in place with a sash. She sighed and observed her surroundings.

There were no doors as far as she could see. A clear plastic wall separated her from the driver and guards. Aside from her, her side of the truck was empty, although she was strapped to the wall of the truck to prevent her from sliding around as the truck moved.

Just as the thought entered her mind, the truck jolted again and stopped abruptly, nearly yanking her head out of place as it tried to dislodge itself from the rest of her body, which was strapped in place.

Two grunts opened the compartment door, which actually turned out to be one of the walls. They unstrapped her and lifted her up as she feigned unconsciousness, not wanting to be given another dose of the herbalist's strange concoctions.

With her eyes half-open, Touko memorized the path they took as they entered a strange cave on a cliffside by the beach. Before they disappeared within its depths, Touko saw another cave not more than a couple hundred steps away that had Magma guards patrolling the entrance.

Once inside the Rocket hideout, the path became a winding labyrinth, and Touko lost track of the way back quickly. She didn't worry about that for long, as she was dumped onto a cold stone floor. One of the grunts chained her left ankle before untying her feet, although her hands were left bound.

"Commander Janine, will that be all?" One grunt asked with a salute.

The violet-haired girl narrowed her eyes at Touko. "She's awake. Her breathing is too quick."

"Eh?" the disconcerted grunt looked at Touko in alarm, and she tried even harder to feign sleep. Irritated, the commander strode to Touko's cell, her boots clicking on the stone floor, and grabbed the younger girl's hair.

"Oww!" Touko yelped in surprise as her head was pulled up violently. "What are you doing?"

"Did you think you could fool ME?" Janine hissed.

"What did I ever do to you?" Touko demanded, scowling. "YOU'RE the one who kidnapped ME!"

Viciously, the purple-haired girl yanked on Touko's hair, and tears collected in the corners of her eyes as she bit back a gasp of pain.

"Um, Commander... The Master ordered us not to harm her..." One of the grunts interceded tentatively, and the woman whipped around, hatred burning in her eyes.

"Fine," she snapped. "I won't hurt her." A cruel smile danced on her lips as she spoke. "Do you have the items?" The grunt hesitated, but handed over a small leather bag at her impatient hiss.

She rummaged through it and found what she wanted: a crystal vial full of clear lavender liquid, much lighter than the dark violet kind that hung on a gold chain around Touko's neck. The commander held the vial out to the grunt, who accepted it with confusion. His expression turned to horror, however, at her cold command. "Make her drink this," she told him, her eyes expressionless.

"But we received orders not to harm her!" The grunt trembled. "We'll be killed for this!"

"Indeed, if the master finds out." Janine smiled again, that cold predator's smile. "On the other hand, if you don't do as I say now, I can personally give you a fate worse than death. So I would suggest that you do as I say and make sure the master never finds out."

The grunt's mouth was wide open in horror, and he said weakly, "Yes, Commander." Stiffly, he walked to Touko and stopped.

Bracing herself, Touko kicked out at him as soon as he approached, and he stepped back instinctively. He glanced at the commander, who had folded her arms expectantly, and kept advancing.

Touko struggled and thrashed as he tried to hold her down, but eventually she ran out of energy, panting as she continued to resist. The grunt was also getting tired, but he had the benefit of not being tied up, and he grabbed her throat and slammed her against the wall, pinning her to the cold stone. He managed to immobilize her thrashing by sitting on top of her, and he pinched her nose until, gasping, she was forced to breathe through her mouth. With one swift movement he poured the contents of the vial into her throat and forced her mouth closed.

Much of the liquid leaked out of her mouth, but he held her mouth shut until she could not resist swallowing, her nose burning painfully. Satisfied, the grunt hastily retreated outside the cell and almost slammed the cell door shut in his haste.

As soon as she swallowed the strange liquid, her pupils dilated, her eyes widening and staring blankly, and her breathing became ragged and sharp. Soon, sweat covered her pale body, and her face became feverish. She felt a throbbing pain in the pit of her belly, and her head hurt immensely.

Clutching her stomach, she saw through foggy eyes a coldly ecstatic smile on the violet-haired women's face before she turned and walked away. Shortly after, the pain overloaded her senses and her mind went blank, though there was still the pain, the throbbing of her feverish body, the splitting of her head. She couldn't escape it, it was ripping her apart. She screamed senselessly, rolling on the cold stone ground. For a brief moment she really thought she was going to die, and one single thought rang through her mind. (I)N!

Then everything went black.

* * *

><p><em>"Touko?"<em>

_Touko turned and saw, to her surprise, N. She looked around; everything was green and grassy. Where was she?_

_"Musharna was right," N said, relief etched on his face. "She said I could probably reach you through the Dream World."_

_"The Dream World? But I thought that needed Professor Fennel's machine thing..." Touko frowned. She was probably just in a regular dream. Either way, it was nice._

_"Usually, but Musharna said that if two people are close enough, she can link them by dreaming," N said with a broad smile. "Isn't that great?"_

_Touko nodded dumbly. "Wow..." She tried to figure out what was going on. She had been kidnapped by Team Rocket, she remembered. There had been an unpleasant woman with cold eyes. She remembered fighting furiously against something, but... no, she didn't know what it was that had happened._

_"Where are you right now? We'll come save you!" N said vigorously, and Touko frowned in concentration._

_"I'm not sure... A place by the beach, in a cave. There's a magma hideout nearby in another cave. I heard city sounds. We got here in a truck."_

_"Beach..." N frowned. "There are lots of beaches in Hoenn. A beach with a cave and a city? I don't think it's Slateport, there's no place for a cave there... It might be Lilycove."_

_"Don't worry too much. I'm not some useless princess. I'll be able to escape on my own, I bet."_

_"I know," N sighed. "But I want to come anyways. Isn't that fine? That way, I'll be able to help you if you need it._

_Touko felt a bubbly surge of warmth for some reason and opened her mouth to say her thanks, but the wrong words came out. "Why would you go to so much trouble?"_

_N blinked. "Well, you're my friend."_

_The warmth disappeared. "Oh. You don't have to, you know. Bianca and Cheren probably wouldn't, not unless it was something I couldn't handle by myself."_

_"Should... should I not?" N sounded anxious and a bit hurt._

_"No!" She wrapped her arms around his waist as if he would disappear. "Or, what I mean is, yes! That is, um, if you... want to... I... I'd like it."_

_"I'm glad. I just want you to be my friend always. I just... don't want to do anything that might... make that..." his voice and warmth began to fade._

_She looked around on alarm. Everything was blurring—she was waking up._

* * *

><p>She gasped as she was wrenched violently from her dream by a kick. Her body ached for some reason, and her mind felt dreary and heavy. It felt like some sort of parasite had invaded her body.<p>

Another kick. She winced as she tried to turn her head towards her oppressor. Of course, it was that unpleasant woman. Janine. She remembered her doing something terrible, but she couldn't remember what. She did remember a dream, though, a lovely dream.

"Remember this?" The woman held up a vial of suspicious-looking clear violet liquid. It did look familiar, but Touko didn't know why.

"She doesn't remember. It worked." The cold woman was talking to someone else now, and Touko closed her eyes again, thinking they were done with her. She didn't see it coming when a grunt suddenly wrenched her mouth open and poured the contents of the vial into her mouth, and she swallowed all of it out of surprise.

Waves of pain coursed through her, and she almost lost consciousness immediately, but she was too tired to even feel pain as she collapsed on the ground. (I) At least it wasn't as bad as last time, she thought instinctively. And then, Wait, what last time?

Janine watched her through narrowed eyes as the small girl convulsed in pain. She almost felt sorry for her, but it was necessary. HE would be pleased. And of course, the concoction would erase her memory, so she wouldn't be able to tattle to the Master. Working with split loyalties was annoying, but the consequences of crossing either man were even worse.

The younger girl had already passed out, and Janine turned and walked away. The Master was coming soon, and she needed to prepare things. It irked her that she was commanded by someone no older than her, but he was more powerful, and in Team Rocket, power was the key.

* * *

><p><em>"N? Are you here?" Touko looked around the grassy forest nervously. It was much blurrier than last time, which scared her.<em>

_There was a muffled response. After a few seconds, the air shimmered for a second, and N appeared, as blurry as the background. When he saw her, he grabbed her hand and her surroundings, as well as him, became clear._

_"Oh, thank goodness you're fine," he breathed. "It was getting difficult to find you even though you were asleep. It was as if your signal was dead for a minute."_

_"I have been getting tired," Touko admitted. She felt heavy as a rock even though she was dreaming._

_"Are you alright?" N furrowed his brow, his voice concerned. "Who kidnapped you? Are they doing anything bad to you?"_

_"Team Rocket, I think." She hesitated. "I can't remember anything that happened since I got here... all I know is that I've been really tired." (i) And my body hurts, she thought, but she didn't want to worry him. "Is Bianca fine?"_

_"Oh yes, but she's been worried sick." He sighed wistfully and took her hand. "We've been traveling as fast as we can, but we won't get to Lilycove until tomorrow. Hang in there. We'll come get you soon."_

_Unexpectedly, Touko hugged him. He felt warm, even though it was a dream. N looked dazed for a second, his face turning red, but he returned the hug and stroked her hair. "We'll definitely find you." She sighed and leaned in closer to him, bringing her face close to his._

_"N, I... I think—"_

* * *

><p>A burning sensation in her nose woke her up as liquid went down the wrong way. She coughed, accidentally swallowing the rest. Immediately, her sore body began to burn and ache, and her head swam until nothing made sense anymore. She shuddered and gasped as a wave of pain passed through her, her stomach feeling as if it were being eaten by acid. And her chest felt heavy, like lead. Like something poisonous was invading her body. She was glad that she lay on the cold, rock-hard ground as it gave her an anchor, and the thought of seeing her green-haired friend kept her sane through it all.<p>

"The master is arriving tomorrow," Janine's familiar voice hissed. "We won't be able to afford risking the ghostwater after this. She MUST be ready for the sacrifice."

What was the crazy woman talking about? But Touko didn't brood on the question as she shuddered again and gasped from another spasm of pain. Then she couldn't see or feel or hear anymore, and her vision became nothing but white.

She wasn't sure how long she stayed like that, half-awake but senseless, unthinking. All she could feel was the burning in her heart and stomach and mind, and it hurt, it hurt like hell. Sometimes she would grab the cold, rough stone just to assure herself that it was real, but her fingers could barely feel the stone even as it scraped her fingers, making them bloody and cut up.

When she finally managed to pull herself upright, she could not remember anything from before. She didn't even know how long it had been. No longer than two days since she had been kidnapped, surely? She winced with every little movement that made fire course through her muscles anew. Finally, after many painful hours, she fell asleep again.

* * *

><p><em>The forest again, of course, or so she assumed. But this time, it was more than blurry; she couldn't make out anything other than colors. Was she going to be able to see N? Suddenly, a yawning chasm of fear opened up in her heart. What if she couldn't see him this time?<em>

_She huddled on the ground, suddenly cold and afraid, her body too heavy to lift. She sat on grass, but it was too undefined to really be grass; it was nothing but a green blob. It was as if she was in a separate dimension from her surroundings._

_Suddenly, imperceptibly, there was a movement in the air. A flash of green that matched so well with the forest that for a second Touko didn't even notice it. She saw something move the second time, and she lifted her head tiredly._

_"Touko...?" The voice was faint and faraway, yet at the same time it felt like she could hear it right next to her. "Touko...!"_

_She finally noticed the translucent silhouette and reached out to touch it. For a second, she grasped nothing, but soon it became a living, breathing figure. N. She almost cried from happiness, her soul tired and broken by now._

_"It's been getting harder and harder to reach you. It's like you don't exist anymore sometimes, like you're in another universe that I can't reach." N sighed and kneeled on the ground, wrapping his arms around Touko and cradling her head._

_"Mhmm," Touko mumbled, only half-listening, her face pressed against his soft, warm shirt, her tears staining the white fabric._

_"We'll definitely be there soon," N promised. "We've found the Rocket hideout already. It's just behind the boulder line in the water, but we'll find some way to cross it and get you out."_

_Touko's only response was to cling even harder to N. Slowly, he pulled back a little and stroked her hair as she wiped her eyes and gazed up at him, her eyes a bit red. She trembled just a little, but there was such an intense look of trust in those eyes that he brushed his lips against her forehead reassuringly._

_Her trembling stilled, and she sighed, feeling a rush of warmth. When he pulled back, she leaned forward and pressed her lips against his lightly, hesitantly. When he recovered from his surprise, he leaned into the embrace and pulled her closer, a sweetness in their kiss as warmth melted into warmth, the heartbeats of the two very different trainers synchronized to form one steady beat. Their hands were the same temperature._

_Then suddenly, she began to feel him disappear, and panic rose in her heart. She grabbed his shirt as if that would prevent her from waking, but he began fading nonetheless. Right before the sweet dream dissipated into the morning mist, she felt something soft and fuzzy pressed into her fingers._

_Then it was over, and she was awake. She opened her eyes, looking down at her hands that still held the warmth of the dream. Her eyes widened as she saw what she held, and she could almost cry for joy._

_It was her Torchic doll. She buried her face in its warm felt that still held N's lingering scent and touch, wishing it would last forever._

* * *

><p>"The orders have arrived! Move faster, or he'll be displeased!" The angry voice echoed through the cold stone corridor, reaching Touko's tired ears.<p>

As several sets of footsteps approached, Touko found herself clutching her doll tightly, reminding herself of the wonderful times. She made a silent promise to herself: she would definitely escape from this place. She wasn't a dainty princess, and she wouldn't let N save her all the time. The shadows of the grunts and the commander rounded the corner, and Touko braced herself.

"Quickly! We only have two hours to finish the operation! I don't care how many men it takes, just HURRY!" The violet-haired woman scowled, and five bulky grunts were shooed into the cell.

Touko quickly found herself overpowered, and she was bound and gagged again, although she managed to tuck the doll into her makeshift dress. One of the grunts threw her over his shoulder like a potato sack despite her useless struggling. They marched quickly until they exited the maze-like halls and entered a large cavern with a pool in the center.

As they stopped by the deep-blue water, Touko peered nervously into it. It was endless and dark, as if the ocean floor were a million miles away. She was startled by a faint rumbling in the pool that quickly became the roar of a motor as an elegant black submarine burst out of the water. It was sleek and spotless, and it was probably the most high-tech sort available.

The grunt hauled her in, with the commander following closely, and tossed her in a dark room. To her surprise, as soon as the lights turned on, she found that the room was actually rather luxurious, with a plush bed and a fuzzy carpet, as well as a flat-screen TV, a sofa, and various other things. The fact that she was still tied up made it all rather pointless, however.

No one had bothered to secure her in any way, either, and she tumbled this way and that as the submarine dove through the seawaters. Several strong currents almost caused her to crash into a wall, and she thanked her lucky stars that she was not any rounder.

Finally, after many bruises and close calls, the submarine shuddered to a halt in a strange underwater cave. Amazingly, there was plenty of air there, and one of the bulky grunts picked her up roughly and carried her up several flights if stairs carved out of the rough red rock of the cave. She was placed in a small but warm room with a plush red carpet and creme wallpaper.

She waited for something to happen. After two seemingly endless days in a cold cell, it seemed unbelievable that Team Rocket would just let her stay here, but no one came by for hours. Her stomach complained a bit, and Touko realized that she hadn't had anything to eat during that time, although she had been too tired and sore before to worry about it.

Without warning, a grunt vigorously swung the door open. His face was red and he was out of breath. After a few splutters and heavy gasping, he burst out, "The master would like to see you!"

Touko scowled at him but allowed him to untie the ropes on her wrists and ankles. She was too far from any civilization to escape anyways, unless she got a map of the hideout. Trying to muster as much dignity as she had left, she walked behind the grunt as he led her through the red rock corridors. The hallways were surprisingly wide, and despite being carved straight out of the stone, the walls were smooth and flat.

They passed several small doors and entryways before finally stopping at a large, more ornate one, though it was still rather simple by most standards. The grunt rapped on the door and barked his name, and after an eternity, the door swung open. Inside was an office-like room with several chairs and a large desk, as well as two other doors, which were of the regular size, though still a bit fancier than the doors outside, and a long hallway. The lair of the final boss, Touko thought wryly.

From here, the grunt seemed confused as well. He looked around and scratched his head nervously, glancing at the guards standing next to the large door they had just passed through for help. Neither guard even seemed notice him.

Luckily for him, a third guard strode out of the hallway and saw him. Impatiently, the guard motioned for him to follow, and Touko, not knowing where else to go, walked behind him as well.

When they arrived at the end of the hallway, the grunt saluted and walked back. The guard motioned for her to walk through the doors before he, too, slipped into the shadows. Frowning, Touko kicked the doors open, venting all of her frustration and anger on the steel double doors. They gave a large, echoing BANG as they collided with the wall behind and revealing a large, spacious bedchamber with elegant carpeting and rugs and paintings in gilded frames all over the wall. There was a small-ish figure working at a desk nearby, and in the shadows, he did not seem very intimidating. For some reason, she had thought that the final boss would be... larger.

Then figure looked up and she lost the ability to think.

* * *

><p>N kicked the wall of the Lilycove Rocket hideout angrily. "If only we had been just a few hours early! We were so close!"<p>

Bianca bit her lip in worry. "I hope Touko will be alright... She's tough, so I think she can handle it."

Not at all assuaged, N turned to the Rocket grunt they had captured, who was shaking tremendously. "Where did they go?" N demanded.

"N-nowhere," he sputtered nervously.

"Look," N ground his teeth. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way. Which do you prefer?" His eyes darkened and there was a mad, feverish edge to the normally gentle green.

"I really don't know," the grunt pleaded fearfully, seeing the near-insanity in the teen's eyes. "Don't kill me, please. I just know that the master wants her..."

"The leader of Team Rocket? Who would that be?"

The grunt stammered a name, and N's eyes widened. Behind him, he heard Bianca inhale sharply. Not even in his darkest dreams could he have imagined this outcome, but somehow, he thought ironically, there was a twisted fatefulness about it.

"Come, Bianca." N turned heel and exited the cavern, suddenly exuding an air of regality, of dignity and power. He had not felt this way in a long while. "We'll need to visit some old friends."

There was no way around it. He would need control of Team Plasma for this.

* * *

><p>Woot. Stuff happens. Bianca('s Pokemon) is useful. Uninspiring comments.<p>

PS. Sorry for any typos. XD I type these up on my ipod so that I can write anywhere I want, but it's way too easy to make mistakes on that.

Um. So yeah. Please review. XD


	7. Chapter 7: Revenge and Truth

Sorry for the delay, guys D: I'm a junior next year, so this summer's pretty hectic with AP homework and studying for the SAT and all that usual crap. I swear I did try not to procrastinate it just sorta happened. Well, anyways, this chapter's extra long as recompense. And in case you don't remember what happened before, it was something like this:

Touko & co. went to Lavaridge where Touko got kidnapped by some Team Rocket peeps and is now in their lair speaking to their boss, and N is freaking out but decides to try being badass. Also Janine is a crazy b*tch who apparently likes to poison helpless victims or something.

And so that's it. Enjoy, I hope. xD

* * *

><p>"What are you doing here? I thought " Touko stopped breathily, her face flushed. She simply didn't know what to say.<p>

"Well, I was waiting for you." At the desk, Touya grinned impishly. Yes, it was really him. She could have laughed if it hadn't been such a shock. Touya - sweet, kind, gentle, mischievious Touya whom she had known since the beginning of time - was the leader of the great crime syndicate, Team Rocket? Since when? How? Why? She thought she could almost cry.

"Why...?" Her voice broke, her sense of betrayal leaking through. "Why would you...?"

Almost instantly, he got up and hugged her fiercely. "I'm sorry," he whispered into her hair. "I had to. It was the only way."

"But _why_?"

He took a deep breath. "It's a long story..." Carefully, he drew away and gently pulled her over to the large but neatly made bed, patting on the edge for her to sit. "Please, believe me, I never wanted to leave. I thought for days to come to this decision, but..."

"Then are you satisfied? That you left everyone, left _me_, for... _Team Rocket_?" Touko's eyes burned darkly.

"It's not like I was planning to join. Things just happened!" He snapped, then sighed and ran his fingers through his hair frustratedly. "Look, it's difficult to explain. I'll just tell you the story."

Touko frowned and sighed, waiting.

"It started a few weeks before I left... I turned fifteen a couple of weeks before you did, but I decided not to start on my journey before you, so I waited. I wanted us all to be together. But then... There was this one man. He was dressed oddly, like some sort of bad cosplayer trying to look medieval. He always hung around my house, and sometimes when I went out to train, he was there. Watching. Eventually I figured out that he was part of Team Plasma, but by then it was too late.

"The grunt told me one day, 'You have been chosen as Hero. You will battle our King to determine who is right.'

"I didn't understand him then. I thought he was a nutcase. But later, that horrible man... Ghetsis... He found me in the midst of training and just watched silently. I didn't even notice him until he clapped and laughed coldly. His eye was so cold! Touko, I've never felt a more chilling moment in my life... But, anyways, he just chuckled and said, 'You are indeed a worthy Hero. But I cannot let such silly things as myths get in my way. You will not be allowed to battle the King.'

I asked him who he was and what he meant, and he explained everything. How N wanted to take over Unova and separate people from Pokemon."

"And you decided to leave?" Touko choked. It was hard enough to accept that the real Hero should have been Touya, but she had known that from the start. No, the most horrendous part was that he had run away. Run away from the world.

"I had no choice!" He snapped, his eyes suddenly dark and icy. "He threatened me, Touko. Not me-he couldn't have defeated me even if he had all the legendaries in the world-but he threatened to hurt Cheren, or Bianca, or my family, or... or-"

"Me, right?" A chill ran down Touko's spine. The words he had said on that day suddenly made perfect sense. "Touya, I'm no princess. I don't need you to protect me. I never needed you to run! Are you trying to say you left because you thought you were _protecting_ me?" A note of hysteria began to creep into her voice. She laughed bitterly. "The irony of it all! I waited for you for two years... because you decided to leave me for my own good, isn't that right? And then what happened to that when I became Hero?"

"That's why I battled you. To make sure you were ready. If you hadn't been, I would have rushed into the castle and defeated N myself." His eyes darkened even more. "Touko, you don't understand, do you?"

"Understand? What is there to understand? You left, and now you're trying to make excuses? What kind of twisted thinking is that? No, worse, it's not even twisted. It's the kind of thing I'd expect from a coward! I'd never have thought you to be one, Touya!" She glared at him angrily, feeling even more betrayed than she had when he had left. Always, always, she had believed somewhat desperately that he had had a good reason for leaving. But this?

"Touko!" Without warning, he grabbed her wrist tightly. "Why aren't you listening? Just recently you would have listened and understood, I know that. You tried so desperately to find me in Dewford! But something changed... When you went to Mauville, you didn't hurry like you were supposed to. What changed?"

"Wha-?" She tried to pull her wrist away before she realized what his words meant and her eyes widened. "You knew? Dewford... Mauville... You were the thief? But... how? Why?"

His eyes were shadowy and cold as ice. Her face paled as she stared into then. "You're not Touya..." She whispered hoarsely. The Touya she had known wouldn't have stolen badges, wouldn't have lied to her or kidnapped her. Could a person change that much in two years...?

"Why? Touko, why won't my words reach you anymore?" With his free hand, he grabbed Touko's other wrist and pinned her to the blankets, searching her face. "Is it N? That bastard... Not once, buy twice!"

"What are you talking about?" Touko demanded, suddenly afraid. This wasn't Touya, this wasn't Touya at all. It was his body, but the person inside... it was as if he had been twisted. What had happened in those two years?

"I know it was him... First he rips us apart with his hero business... And now, he's preventing my words from reaching you, isn't he? You won't listen to me because you're thinking of _him_!" He pressed harder on her wrists, and she flinched as he brought his face closer. She tried to knee him in the stomach, but he only pinned down her legs as well. For all his small stature, Touya was strong.

"I...don't...know... what you're... talking about," She gasped, as his weight pressed into her and she found her breaths becoming shallow.

"What has he done with you?"

"D-done?" Touko stammered, feeling her face redden as she remembered the kiss from the dream. They had held hands and hugged. Innocent by any teenager's standards, but...

It was the wrong answer. Touya's eyes narrowed as he watched her face flush, and he suddenly pressed his lips onto hers, roughly forcing his tongue in.

"Mhmmn!" Touko protested as eyes widened in shock. Her body stilled as she struggled to comprehend what was going on.

"I won't let him steal anything else from me," Touya whispered into her skin.

The words struck sense back into her, and she began struggling again, trying to find something to say that would stop him. _N isn't the thief_, _you are_, she thought. _What do you mean, steal 'anything else'? I'm not a thing, I can't be stolen, _she thought. But neither thought found voice, especially not since his lips still sealed hers.

A knock on the door broke Touya's sudden madness, and he slowly pulled away, letting Touko go. Coldly, briskly, he walked to the door and opened it. "Yes?" he demanded.

"Um... There's a message from the Lilycove base..." A nervous grunt told him.

"A message?" Touya exhaled impatiently. "So what is it?"

"Well..." the grunt swallowed, his eyes focused with fixed determination on the floor, his sweaty hands twisting. "They have received a, um, a request from... from..."

"Spit it out already!" Touya snapped.

"The King of Team Plasma..."

There was dead silence. Then, bitterly, hollowly, Touya laughed. There was pure venom in that sound, and Touko couldn't help but shudder. "Oh, I see. I know what he wants. But even if I agree to meet him, I won't let him steal my treasures anymore." He whipped around and smiled cruelly at Touko. "I see how it is. This time I'm the evil wizard and he's your knight in shining armor, isn't that right?" While Touko blinked, stunned, he turned and left.

* * *

><p>"This has to work. This has to work." Bianca muttered the words like a chant.<p>

"Bianca..." N sighed and fingered his Menger sponge anxiously. "Are you sure this is what Touko wants? It was Touya who kidnapped her, and... she... she likes Touya, right? As a... as a 'lover.' Do I have any right to interfere?"

"Don't you want to save her?" Bianca asked, taken aback.

"Of course," he whispered fiercely. "With all my heart. But I don't want her to hate me."

Bianca's fists clenched. "Whether she likes it or not, we're going in. Kidnapping? This is going too far, even for Touya. When I get my hands on him... Although, somehow, I have a feeling that Touya isn't going to be the Touya we knew."

N nodded, reassured. He watched as the Rocket grunts darted this way and that frantically. One of them had just put down a phone and was gesturing wildly at another. The second grunt scowled for a moment and then ran in N's direction. "The Master has agreed to your request," he told them. "He will be here shortly. Please wait in the meeting room."

"No thank you," N answered curtly. "I don't want to end up dead because of something you rigged in your 'meeting room.' We'll meet outside, on the beach.

"Fine, if the master agrees," the grunt snapped. He stormed off in a huff and began talking to another grunt.

A few hours later, a submarine pulled up on a spot on the beach hidden from the rest of the cove by a line of mysterious rocks that seemed to repel people. A few grunts exited first, but soon Touya himself stepped off. He glared at the grunts and said something, and they bowed and reentered the sub.

Briskly, he walked towards N and Bianca, his face expressionless. When he got closer to Bianca, he gave her a quick glance. "Long time no see?"

Without warning, she slapped him. N and Touya both took a step back, stunned. Touya was the first to recover, but his face showed a complex of emotions-hurt, sadness, guilt, confusion, longing-before his expression hardened. "I see you have some pent-up anger. You were always rather explosive when you got mad. Surprising to see you here, though. The only person I had ever planned to come to Hoenn with was Touko." He sent a meaningful, hostile glance at N.

"Don't you dare try to act cool, Touya. You owe me some explanations. I'm not going to ask why you left two years ago or why you're stealing badges, but how dare you kidnap Touko? How dare you betray her like that? You know how much she loved you!"

"Ha! If she did love me, how could a dirty rat like him steal her away from me?" His eyes flickered venomously at N, and when they turned back to Bianca, they were cold as steel.

"You left her! Without warning or reason! Two years is far too long, Touya!"

"And whose fault is that? Whose fault is it that I was forced to leave my home because some dirty rat didn't want to play fair? You!" Touya glared menacingly at N, "Your people threatened me to leave! It was leave or hurt Touko!"

N opened his mouth in confusion, but no words came out. It took him a few moments to understand what Touya meant, and he knitted his eyebrows together as he realized. "Ghetsis did something, didn't he? I remember him talking about 'crushing a Hero.' I didn't listen because it sounded like complete nonsense.

"Well, now you know. _I_ am the Hero you were meant to battle, and you were the one who caused all this." Touya smiled cruelly. "She'll hate you for this."

"Arceus, how did this happen...? That's not possible..." He stumbled slightly and sank into the sand.

"Don't be ridiculous, Touya," Bianca glared at him. "You would never have been able to become Hero. You're too weak, even if you can battle better. Your heart is weak. Just look at you right now! What happened isn't N's fault. It was yours. If you had been stronger, if you had believed in Touko, this wouldn't have happened. It was a test, and you failed."

"What would you know?" he snarled. "What would you know about being cast out of your birthplace, of being utterly alone in a strange region? Stripped of everything you had once wanted? You're too weak to understand, Bianca! From the start, you never wanted as much as I did! It doesn't matter if you're unable to attain what you want!"

Bianca glared at him angrily, and she seemed to want to slap him again, but N interceded. "Fine. If you think you're the Hero, then let's fight. We'll see whose right then."

"You? Fight me?" Touya laughed harshly. "You couldn't even win against Touko! Besides, weren't you against Pokemon trainers?"

"I was. But Touko showed me how Pokemon and people bond through enduring hard times together. And besides, I am not fighting for fun. My Pokemon agreed to fight with me for what I believe in, just as I would do for them. If my convictions are stronger, then I will win." If he won, then that would mean that Touko didn't hate him, wouldn't it?

"Very well." Touya smiled coldly and drew his first Pokeball, and N followed suit. Bianca watched helplessly as the two glared at each other, then released their Pokemon.

* * *

><p>Touko rubbed her slightly bruised wrists numbly. Now that Touya was gone, everything seemed unreal. How could the sweet Touya of her memories turned into... that? It was horrifying. A nightmare. She stroked the Torchic doll she had managed to conceal in her makeshift dress, glad that he had not discovered it.<p>

Suddenly, the door to her small room flew open, and a tall figure strode in. She recognized the striking violet hair immediately, and somehow, she felt dread pile up in her stomach, though she couldn't remember the woman doing anything to her that would warrant such a feeling.

"Follow me," Janine commanded. Suspiciously, Touko obeyed. They passed through several hallways and down three flights of stairs. Grunts flanked both sides of her, so escape was impossible. Finally, the reached an area where the rock walls were much rougher, and Janine kicked the younger girl into a large room. It was empty except for rough carpeting and a small glass window that provided an underwater view. Only three of the walls in the room were smooth, so it was probably still under construction.

"This will be your lodging for a few days," the commander said, narrowing her eyes.

"Did Touya say that?" Touko asked in disbelief.

"No. What he doesn't know can't hurt him. He can't hurt me, anyways, since I technically only owe him allegiance indirectly. After all, he only controls the Hoenn branch of Team Rocket. My primary master is... elsewhere." The woman slid two icy-cold fingers under Touko's chin, and the girl flinched. "So, knowing that, girl, you'll not breathe a word of this to anyone, or you'll be sleeping with the fishes."

Touko's breathing quickened, and her eyes flickered involuntarily toward the window in the corner. A Lanturn had just passed by, casting a momentary glow in the dark room.

"Why do you hate me?" She asked, her eyes darting back to meet the older woman's. "I've never met you before."

Janine smiled cruelly. "How arrogant of you to think that way. I do not hate _you_. Your existence is of no consequence to me. However..." her grip on Touko's chin tightened, and her nails bit into the girl's skin. "The master loves you, in some way or other, therefore I am dedicated to destroying your happiness as completely as possible." She paused and lifted an eyebrow. "Although, it was not my idea to give you that ridiculous herbalist's concoction, not that you'll remember it."

"What?" Touko frowned, confused.

"No. I serve Team Rocket. My fate was sealed the moment I was born. I could blame my father, not that it would help. I can't hurt him, after all." She sighed and rolled her eyes, pretending to be disappointed. "Looks like I'll have to be satisfied with you. You can blame me for your misfortunes, if you want. Although, where you're going to end up, I don't think it'll matter." With another cruel smile and a wave, she left, the sound of her heels hitting the floor muffled by the carpet. On her way out, she told one of the grunts outside, "Don't forget to give her _that_. We need to cram as much of the stuff into her as we can before the ritual."

Before Touko could wonder what she meant, a grunt had already entered the room, holding a small vial. It looked eerily familiar, and she shuddered when she saw it. Somehow, she felt as if she had swallowed some of it before. Unthinkingly, her fingers flew to the crystal vial hanging from the gold chain around her neck. She glanced down. The two liquids did look very similar, although hers was darker. She looked back up at the grunt.

"You can either drink it, or we'll make you drink it," he told her.

She didn't doubt it. And anyways, her fingers were already reaching toward the vial as if some puppeteer were controlling her. Even as her instincts screamed at her to stop, warned her that she must not, her body had stopped listening and was drawn to the irresistible liquid. She hesitated for just a moment with the cold glass at her lips, but in one swift motion, she tilted the contents of the vial down her throat and shuddered.

Almost immediately, she felt the energy leave her body, and she fell to her knees as a spasm of pain wracked her body. Slowly, the pain subsided, though, and a strange, alien energy began running through her veins. When she thought she could finally stand, she got to her feet cautiously, feeling dizzy and faraway as if she were floating. The crystal vial at her neck burned, though not unpleasantly, against her skin, resonating with the strange energy she felt. Disconcerted, she looked around. The grunt had already left, and the door was locked securely.

The door was locked. She pounded on the walls, scraping her pale skin, and for a second she almost thought that she would go _through_ that wall... But then the moment passed, and she shook her head and sank to the floor. The odd energy was beginning to leave her as well, and now she was the master of her own body again-a tired, bruised, battered body. At that moment, she wanted nothing more than to simply wait for someone, anyone to come rescue her, but she shook her head again. She wouldn't play the fragile princess.

Suddenly, she was filled with a restless desire to escape. But how? Her eyes fell on the small glass window. It was just slightly wider than she was. How far underwater was the Rocket base? Would she be able to make it to the surface? But she was too desperate to care. She gripped the crystal vial, and a sudden surge of that alien energy filled her again, giving her the strength to strike the glass with as much as she had.

The glass shattered immediately, and water began pouring in, washing the glass bits inside. A few cut Touko's skin, but luckily nothing serious happened. She waited until the water was deep enough to submerge the window before taking a deep breath and squeezing through.

The pressure was painful, but surprisingly not too much. She wasted no time on wondering why and simply kicked, reaching for the surface with all her strength. Her vision was blurry, though, and it was difficult to tell which way was up. The entire world was dark and foggy, with not an ounce of light to assure her of where she was. She tried to breath in, but couldn't. There was no air. Her head became dizzy and light, and she began clawing frantically for the surface. All too soon, the edges of her vision became black, and she was seeing spots. She had been too hasty, she was going to die, if only she had waited...

_How strange! A human? Here? Without a Pokemon, either! You should be dead by now, I think._

Touko couldn't see what it was-all she could make out was some sort of brownish color, like a rock. She gave up and went back to concentrating on dying properly.

_You smell like ghosts... They're not very nice, usually. I'm glad there aren't any here. Oh! Pardon me! You are dying? I'm sorry, I didn't notice. Well, that makes sense. You are a human. Here._

Touko blinked as an air bubble suddenly surrounded her, and amazing, wonderful life filled her lungs. She did nothing but breath in huge gasps for several minutes, trying to calm her dizziness. Exhausted, she lay on the Pokemon's back and tried to focus her blurry vision.

_I wish I could thank this... what kind of Pokemon is it?_ she thought dizzily.

_Well, I believe humans call me... Now, what was it again... A Relicanth, yes!_

Touko's jaw dropped. _You can hear me? No, wait, I can hear you, too! I can talk to Pokemon? What's going on?_

_I don't know, I thought you were a human-shaped Pokemon at first. Some kind of ghost Pokemon, maybe. What are you? The ancestors say that humans aren't suppose to be able to talk to Pokemon._

"Amazing," she whispered, awed. "I knew that N could talk to Pokemon, but me...? How, I wonder? But, either way, this is amazing..."

_I agree, I've never talked to a human before. It's quite something._

_Oh! That's right! I need to find N_, she told the Relicanth. _I think he's at the Lilycove beach-that's were Touya went. Can you get there? Or is that too much of a hassle? I'd hate to interrupt you if you were in the middle of something..._

_Oh, no, it's quite alright. We're almost there, you see. I felt something that could sense me that wasn't a Pokemon there, so I headed that way out if curiosity. Might be your "N."_

_Thank you. You don't know how much this means to me. Or maybe you do...?_

_I can feel it, _the Relicanth told her.

Back at the beach, N was running, his movements hampered by the sand. He dived just in time to dodge a powerful blast of Whirlwind from Touya's Skarmory. His Carracosta had managed to dodge it, too, and it retaliated with a roaring wave of Surf that knocked Skarmory back.

"Not back," Touya smiled coldly as he shook water off of his now-soaked hair. "To think that we're both even... I must be loosing my touch. Fine, then. I'll show you what I'm made of." He pulled out a Pokeball and withdrew Skarmory, choosing instead a glossy Ultra Ball.

Recognizing that he was about to send out his strongest, N did the same. He stroked Reshiram's Pokeball lovingly for a second before tossing it, releasing the great dragon.

"As I thought. But you're not the only one chosen by the legends! Go forth, Darkrai!" He laughed hysterically as the dark being appeared, seeming to taint the very air itself. There was something off about that Pokemon. As if it were made from the very essence of nightmares.

"Dark Pulse!" Touya commanded. The Pokemon rumbled and unleashed a wave of negative energy at Reshiram, who roared as it took the attack.

"Fusion Flare!" N ordered, gritting his teeth. The great dragon of fire roared again and spewed burning flame at the dark figure. Darkrai dodged with the speed of a flitting shadow, but it was still hit partially by the huge blast.

The two continued to battle, seemingly inexhaustible. After being knocked back by the stray heat of yet another of Reshiram's blasts, N picked himself up again and narrowed his eyes. Across the battlefield, Touya also got up painfully and glared at N with a burning hatred.

_Stop!_

N's eyes widened. "Did you hear that? It sounded like... some sort of music"

Touya continued glaring. "Trying to distract me? I-"

_Stop it! You're only hurting yourselves!_

"What...? A... song?" Touya's eyes unfocused. "It sounds familiar..."

"It's beautiful..." N breathed. "I think I've heard it before. Just once."

Touya snapped back to attention and watched N suspiciously. "You're doing it, aren't you? To distract me?"

"What?" N gaped, dumbfounded. "No!"

_Stop! Please!_

"Darkrai! Dark Void! Put his dragon out of its misery!" Touya's eyes burned with hatred, his focus once again on N, the melody forgotten.

"Reshiram!" N's palms were slightly sweaty. "Don't let him! Dragon Claw!" Reshiram reared for attack as Darkrai began gathering darkness to him.

_Are the two of you dimwits deaf? Seriously, I told you to stop!_

The music was undeniably louder now, but the two trainers and their Pokemon were far too engrossed in their battle to stop. Darkrai was almost invisible, so wrapped was it in a twisting black storm. Reshiram roared like a blazing inferno, just about to strike.

"Relic Song!"

A beautiful song, haunting as the early morning fog, drifted in their direction. N almost dropped his Pokeball as two pairs of eyes turned in the direction of the beach. A girl, enchanting as a goddess of the sea, surfing towards them with tears in her eyes.

The two battling trainers didn't notice as a Pokeball in N's bag opened all by itself. The beautiful song grew louder into an unbearable storm that pierced the depths of heart, painful not because of its volume, but because it was purer than anything that reality could offer. Reshiram roared, and he and Darkrai both fell to the ground, asleep as if nothing in the world could harm them. At peace. Grimacing, both trainers recalled their Pokemon.

"Meloetta!" N's eyes widened as he recognized the hauntingly elegant legendary that had fainted two of his Pokemon once, despite her delicate looks. His anger began to fade all of its own accord, being replaced by a peacefulness that reminded him very much of the Dream World.

Touya stumbled a bit when he realized that Touko had somehow gotten out of the hideout, and when the song began to play, he quickly found his anger slipping away. It dissipated quickly despite his resistance to the melody in the air, and there was nothing left but a feeling of bitter emptiness.

Touko reached them and stumbled onto the warm sand, the Relicanth nudging her slightly. She ran over to N and grabbed her bag, taking a Pokeball and calling the sea Pokemon into it.

"Touko, you're alright!" N grinned, giving her a hug.

She smiled back and was about to speak, but suddenly, an eerie tune began to play. Astonished, she looked around, but her Meloetta had stopped and was frowning in confusion as well. As if by magic, a figure began to appear on the sand-a strikingly familiar figure.

"A second Meloetta?" Touko breathed. "How...?"

* * *

><p>Aaaand that's it. xD Don't forget to review~ Again, sorry for the delay. D8 I'll definitely update sooner from now on, although I prolly won't be able to do once a week anymore. I'll shoot for once every two weeks, though.<p> 


	8. A Note

Sorry, I know that author's notes aren't supposed to be chapters, but I thought it'd be unfair to not say this until the next update. I will delete it and add it onto the next chapter when it comes out, though.

This fanfic's on hiatus. I simply have wayyy too much work for me (I've only gotten about four hours of sleep the last few nights) to write anything right now. I will keep writing, just very very slowly, so there won't be any updates for a couple of months. I'm sorry about the delay, but it's just impossible for me to keep this up for now. Thanks for understanding!


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